Equality Legislation in Northern Ireland

- by Mary McSorley, Equality Commission for Northern Ireland

A Paper Delivered to the ‘Access and Diversity: A New Vision of Work’ Conference hosted by the Equal at Work Project and the Dublin Employment Pact on September 25, 2003 at Croke Park Conference Centre.

Northern Ireland has a complex range of equality legislation which was introduced at different points in time to deal with specific problems/issues. Although we have had a single Equality Commission since October 1999 (formed as part of the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement), which replaced four predecessor single issue bodies, we do not yet have unified legislation. Key legislation includes:

  • Equal Pay Act (Northern Ireland) 1970 as amended
  • Sex Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order 1976 as amended
  • Race Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1997 (Britain had comparable legislation

since 1976!)

  • Fair Employment and Treatment (Northern Ireland) Order 1998 (this Order

repealed and replaced the original legislation covering religion and political opinion which was first introduced in 1976)

  • Disability Discrimination Act 1995 but powers and functions to enforce only given

to the Equality Commission in April 200 via the Equality (Disability, etc) (Northern

Ireland) Order 2000

  • Northern Ireland Act 1998 (created the single Equality Commission and introduced

the public sector statutory duties. Designated public bodies, in carrying out their

functions, have to “have due regard to the need to promote equality of opportunity”

on nine grounds (ie, includes areas not yet covered by anti-discrimination legislation,

eg, sexual orientation, age, having dependants).

Northern Ireland’s domestic equality legislation, like that in RoI, is subject to European Directives and influenced by other European Community and international law. There is some overlap with general employment law, eg, the Employment (NI) Order 2002 introduced new and improved rights which impact on gender equality – better maternity rights, new paternity leave and pay rights, rights for adoptive parents and rights to request flexible working.

Like RoI, the UK and Northern Ireland has to amend existing domestic legislation to meet the requirements of the EU Race and Ethnic Origin Directive 2000 and the Framework Employment Equality Directive 2000. It had been hoped that this would have been achieved through a Single Equality Act for Northern Ireland which the NI Assembly had committed itself to early in the life of the devolved administration.

Postponement of single equality legislation has meant ad hoc and piecemeal amendments to the various separate pieces of existing legislation. This leaves NI with an even more complex patchwork of equality laws which use different definitions and offer different levels of protection on the various grounds. This presents difficulties for both individuals and employers. There are also practical difficulties for the Commission in terms of promotion and advice giving and legal assistance. The Commission had been pushing for integrated legislation, harmonised to the highest standards, which delivers more than the minimum required by Europe – a best practice approach.

OUR EXPERIENCE OF EQUALITY LEGISLATION TO DATE

Northern Ireland’s equality agenda has been dominated by the fair employment (religion and political opinion) legislation. It’s one of the longest standing laws and it has proved effective in bringing about change in the religious composition of many workplaces. It has produced visible results, largely because of the comprehensive monitoring requirements of the legislation – all employers of 11 or more employees (who work more than 16 hours per week) have to make annual monitoring returns to the ECNI. Those which have an identified under-representation of Catholics or Protestants have to commit to affirmative action programmes and to work with the Commission.

The legislation on gender, race and disability permits positive action in certain circumstances but does not require it. The Commission would like to see more comprehensive monitoring on a wider range of grounds in any single equality legislation.

Other specific provisions in fair employment legislation include recruitment from the long term unemployed and 50/50 recruitment to the Police Service of NI. In 2 years, Catholic representation has increased from 8% to over 13%.

Equal Pay and Sex Discrimination legislation has achieved great change but has had limited impact in some areas. Pay gap has reduced but still stands at around 19% for full time workers (much greater for part-time workers). Women are increasingly participating in paid work and even in senior roles, but still grossly underrepresented in certain occupations and in higher managerial roles. Greater progress in public sector but some positive efforts in private sector, eg, Opportunity Now (business-led and high profile).

Initially, equality legislation (especially fair employment) was seen as an imposition on business and was strongly resisted. Increasingly, employers report that complying has improved business & HR practice. Small employers need comprehensive guidance and support so the Commission’s advisory and training services are well regarded.

Difficulty with race legislation in that employers don’t always see the relevance, given that N Ireland only has a visible ethnic minority population of about 1%. Many of the employment complaints we receive are from other EU nationals.

Disability legislation is complex and currently has many exceptions but the duty on employers to make reasonable adjustments is arguably more positive than for other areas.

Legal complaints which the ECNI supports often end in settlements. We seek liaison clauses in settlement terms which gives us the opportunity to influence practices and prevent similar discrimination re-occurring.

Mary McSorleyTel: 028 90 500 661

Information & Advice teamEmail:

Equality Commission for Northern IrelandWebsite: