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Employment: As well as the Equality Act...

An employee can have legal rights quite apart from the Equality Act 2010. This website only looks at the Equality Act (and previous DDA). For other employment rights you could try the CAB adviceguide at www.adviceguide.org.uk. Other employment rights include the following:

Unfair dismissal

If the alleged discrimination relates to dismissal, an unfair dismissal claim is often made as well as a Equality Act claim. It is also possible of course to claim unfair dismissal without claiming under the Equality Act. Subject to some exceptions, you need to have worked for the employer for at least a year in order to claim 'unfair dismissal'.

'Unfair dismissal' is a distinct claim which is made under legislation separate from the Equality Act. It should not be confused with a claim made under the Equality Act in respect of dismissal, for which there is no one year qualifying period.

In the Bennett case unfair dismissal alone was claimed. A supervisor making fun of the employee's stammer was only a contributory factor in the claim.

For more: 'Dismissal' on adviceguide.org.uk

Redundancy legislation

Apart from rules on redundancy payments, an employer may have to offer the employee a suitable alternative job if available. Also the method of choosing people for redundancy should be fair and should not discriminate on the basis of e.g. disability.

For more: 'Redundancy' on adviceguide.org.uk

Breach of contract

For example, an employer's equal opportunity policy may form part of the employment contract, so that a breach of that policy is a breach of contract.

Constructive dismissal

Constructive dismissal is a specific instance of breach of contract. For more about constructive dismissal, see: 'Constructive dismissal' on direct.gov.uk.

In the Bennett case, an unfair dismissal claim, a person who stammers successfully argued that he had been constructively dismissed - though his treatment in relation to the stammer was only a contributing factor. A person who stammers was found not to have been constructively dismissed in Alderson v Walkers Snack Foods, on the particular facts of the case.

Constructive dismissal is treated as 'dismissal' for the purposes of the Equality Act - s.39(7)(b) Equality Act 2010.

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Last updated 5th November, 2010