The Equality Act 2006
What does ‘religion or belief’ mean?
The definition of religion or belief under part 2 is wider than the definition provided in the Employment Equality Regulations (Religion or Belief) 2003. The new definition has four strands:
1. 'religion' means any religion
2. 'belief' means any religious or philosophical belief
3. a reference to religion includes a reference to a lack of religion
4. a reference to belief includes a reference to lack of belief
In the Employment Regulations 2003, 'religion' or 'belief' encompasses any religious belief or similar philosophical belief. In the new definition, beliefs do not have to be philosophically ‘similar’ to religious beliefs. The explanatory notes, published with the Equality Act, advise that the religion or belief ‘must have a clear structure and belief system.’ It specifies: the Baha’i faith, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Rastafarianism, Sikhism and Zoroastrianism. Denominations or sects in a religion are also religions, eg Catholics or Protestants in Christianity. In terms of beliefs, humanism or atheism are likely to be included. Political beliefs are specifically excluded.
Access to Goods, Facilities and Services
Part 2 of the Equality Act 2000 came into effect on 6 April 2007 and makes it unlawful to discriminate on grounds of religion or belief
• in the provision of goods, facilities and services
• in the disposal and management of premises
• in education
• in the exercise of public functions
Unlawful discrimination is:
a) Discrimination against a person because of their religion or belief
b) Discrimination against a person because of a perceived religion or belief – the discriminator perceives a person to have a particular religion or belief and discriminates because of it, whether that perception is correct or not. For instance, a service provider may presume someone belongs to a particular religion because of their appearance. If the person is denied access, s/he will still have suffered detriment ‘on the grounds’ of religion even if the perception of the discriminator was a mistaken perception.
c) Discrimination against someone because of someone else’s belief – for instance, someone is refused a service not because s/he belongs to a religion but because the person with them belongs to that religion.
d) Discrimination against someone because they have the same religion or belief – for example, it is unlawful for a Christian service provider to discriminate against a fellow Christian, or for a Muslim service provider to discriminate against a fellow Muslim because of their religion.
Discrimination in part 2 does not include acts by a service provider motivated by their own religion. If a religious service provider refuses to provide a particular service to a woman because that would conflict with the religion of the service provider, the woman cannot use part 2 of the Equality Act to challenge this. She would have to seek an alternative legal remedy. The focus in part 2 of the Act is on the religion or belief of the person being discriminated against, not the religion or belief of the discriminator.
Religion and belief: employment
These regulations protect employees from discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief. They raise many questions for local authorities. DIALOG can help councils deal with these challenges.
Protection for employees
The Employment Equality Regulations 2003 protect employees from discrimination because of their actual or perceived religion or belief.
Discrimination is unlawful in relation to:
- recruitment and selection
- terms and conditions of employment offered and or applied
- opportunities for training, training itself, job promotions and transfers
- harassment and victimisation
- dismissal, including redundancy
- post employment, for example provision of references
The regulations raise many questions, such as:
- how is religion and belief defined?
- can/must an employer monitor the religion or belief of job applicants and their workforce in general?
- what does ‘perception’ of a person’s religion mean?
- what are the significant exceptions?
- can a religious colleague refuse to work with gay customers?
(pdf, 579.15 KB) Acas has published this guidance on Religion or Belief and the Workplace. This is a guide for employers and employees. This document is not available in Welsh.
