Sexual Orientation Awareness Training

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Sexual OrientationAwareness Training

• Steve Baldwin

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Objectives

• To introduce you to the Employment Equality
  (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003
• How it applies to all areas of employment
• Who is protected
• Who is liable
• Direct Discrimination
• Indirect Discrimination
• Harassment
• Victimisation

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Being the Gay One

• Heard homophobic language
• Witnessed explicit derision of lesbian, gay and
  bisexual people (including patients).
• Recognised that preventing homophobia was not a
  priority of their employer.
• Realised homophobia was not reflected in policy
  statements, training programmes, or part of
  organisational culture.
• When managers ignored, or contributed towards,
  homophobic comments and incidents.

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Being the Gay One

• Unequal treatment, for example, when entering a
  civil partnership.
• Discrimination in relation to their career
  progression.
• Exclusion by their colleagues.
• Inappropriate questions or comments.
• Were subjected to, or overheard, homophobic
  language.

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Being the Gay One

• Dont disclose their sexual orientation to
  anyone.
• Modify their CV and omit any references to
  anything that could indicate they are lesbian,
  gay or bisexual.
• Become advocates and spokespeople for lesbian,
  gay and bisexual rights, even though this can
  become quite tiring.
• Leave the place of work and seek work where
  they will experience less discrimination.
• Leave the sector entirely.

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Being the Gay One

• Better training.
• More robust and accessible policies.
• An increase in visibility of gay people, and
  access to role models.
• Effective disciplinary procedures where they
  would not be victimised if they made a complaint.
  
• Their managers to understand the law, and the
  duties they have to protect staff.
• Networks set up and supported on a local and
  national level so they felt less isolated.
• The sector to recognise the impact that
  discrimination against staff will inevitably have
  on effective patient care.

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GLADD

• Gay and Lesbian Association of Doctors and
  Dentists

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Societal Context

• One in twenty of the UK population identifies as
  lesbian, gay or bisexual.
• Heterosexuality is the most assumed sexuality.
• Lack of awareness and understanding has resulted
  in a lot of fear of isolation and discrimination
  surrounding disclosure of sexuality.

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Legal Context

• On 1st December 2003, Employment Equality (Sexual
  Orientation) Regulations 2003 was enacted across
  the UK.
• This meant that lesbians, gay and bisexual
  employees became legally protected from
  discrimination in the workplace.
• As UKs largest employer, the NHS has a
  responsibility to ensure its up-to-date with the
  implications of this legislation.

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Health Context

• How many gay, lesbians and bisexual patients do
  we have accessing our services ?
• How can we improve the service we provide to gay
  men, bisexual men and women and lesbians?
• What are the health issues facing lesbians, gay
  men, bisexual men and women in the local
  population ?

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Health and Wellbeing

• Mental Health and Social Wellbeing of Gay Men,
  Lesbians, and Bisexuals in England and Wales
  University College Medical School publication.
• Monitor particular experiences and satisfaction
  levels of gay, lesbians, bisexual patients and
  put in place mechanisms to respond appropriately
  to feedback.
• Continue awareness campaign to support
  elimination of discrimination of those who may be
  most vulnerable.

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Healthcare Commission

• The Healthcare Commission (HCC) Standard C7e.
• Expects everyone in the Trust to challenge
  discrimination, further equality, diversity and
  human rights and reducing inequalities in
  healthcare.

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Penalties of Non-compliance

• From 1st October 2007, the new Commission for
  Equality and Human Rights (CEHR) established by
  the Equality Act 2006, will take over enforcement
  and have responsibility for all six strands of
  discrimination law (race, gender, age,
  disability, religion and belief and sexual
  orientation). For breaches of specific duties,
  the CEHR has the power to issue compliance
  notices.

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Definition of Sexual Orientation

• Sexual orientation in the Employment Equality
  (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003 is
• sexual orientation towards persons of the same
  sex, persons of the opposite sex or persons of
  the same and opposite sex.
• the Regulations apply equally to discrimination
  and harassment of heterosexual people as to
  discrimination and harassment of lesbians, gay
  men and bisexual people.

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Who is Protected ?

• Actual and Prospective employees
• Ex- employees
• Apprentices
• Some self-employed workers
• Contract workers
• Actual or prospective partners
• People seeking or undertaking vocational training

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Territorial Scope of the Regulation

• the employee or contract worker does his or her
  work wholly or partly in Great Britain or
• the employee or contract worker does his or her
  work wholly outside Great Britain but the
  employer has a place of business at an
  establishment in Great Britain, the work is for
  the purposes of the business carried on at that
  establishment, and the employee or contract
  worker is ordinarily resident in Great Britain
  when he or she applies for or is offered the
  employment, or at any time during the employment.

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Who is Liable ?

• Employers are liable under the Employment
  Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003
  for sexual orientation discrimination in
  recruitment, terms and benefits, harassment and
  other detrimental treatment during employment,
  dismissal and some discrimination after
  employment.

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Acts of Discrimination

• done by the employer itself
• done by its employees in the course of their
  employment, whether or not the act is done with
  the employer's knowledge or approval or
• done by an agent of the employer with the express
  or implied authority of the employer (whether
  given before or after the act).

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Reasonable and Practicable Steps

• An employer will have a defence to an act of
  discrimination committed by one of its employees
  if it can prove that it took such steps as were
  reasonably practicable to prevent the employee
  from doing that act, or from doing in the course
  of his or her employment acts of that
  description.

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Discrimination after the working relationship has
come to an end

• An act of discrimination committed after the
  working relationship has come to an end will be
  unlawful if it would have been unlawful during
  the course of the working relationship, where the
  act of discrimination consists of subjecting
  someone to a detriment, harassment or
  victimisation due to their sexuality.

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Unlawful discrimination

• The Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation)
  Regulations 2003 prohibit direct and indirect
  sexual orientation discrimination, harassment and
  victimisation in the fields of employment and
  vocational training.

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Direct discrimination

• The Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation)
  Regulations 2003, regulation 3(1)(a) defines
  direct sexual orientation discrimination as being
  where, on grounds of sexual orientation, person A
  treats person B less favourably than person A
  treats or would treat other persons.

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Harassment

• The Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation)
  Regulations 2003, regulation 5 defines harassment
  as being where, on grounds of sexual orientation,
  person A engages in unwanted conduct that
• Violates a persons dignity
• Creates intimidating, hostile, degrading,
  humiliating and offensive environment

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Victimisation

• The Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation)
  Regulations 2003, regulation 4 prohibits
  discrimination by way of victimisation.
• An employee or contract worker (B) has the right
  not to be treated less favourably than the
  employer or principal (A) treats or would treat
  other persons in the same circumstances by reason
  that B has done a 'protected act'

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Genuine Occupational Requirements

• The Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation)
  Regulations 2003, regulation 7 contains an
  exception from unlawful sexual orientation
  discrimination in recruitment, promotion, or
  transfer to, training for or dismissal from any
  job, where a genuine occupational requirement
  applies.

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Example of when GOR applies

• The position of Chief Executive of an
  organisation advising on and promoting gay
  rights.
• If the organisation can show that it is essential
  to the credibility of the person who will be the
  public face of the organisation that he or she be
  gay.

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Special Exception in Regulation 7(3)

• where the employment is for the purposes of an
  organised religion.
• This applies where the employer applies a
  requirement related to sexual orientation so as
  to comply with the doctrines of the religion or,
  because of the nature of the employment and the
  context in which it is carried out, so as to
  avoid conflicting with the strongly held
  religious convictions of a significant number of
  the religion's followers.

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Positive Action

• The Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation)
  Regulations 2003 contain an exception from
  unlawful sexual orientation discrimination in
  relation to acts done in, or in connection with,
  training to fit people of a particular sexual
  orientation for particular work or encouraging
  people of a particular sexual orientation to take
  advantage of opportunities for doing particular
  work.

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Equality Act 2006

• Under the Equality Act 2006, it is unlawful for
  someone to discriminate against you because of
  your sexual orientation
• in any aspect of employment
• when providing goods, facilities and services
• when providing education
• in using or disposing of premises, or
• when exercising public functions.

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Care and healthcare

• Providers of health and social care have a
  responsibility not to discriminate against
  anyone, including lesbians, gay men and bisexual
  people.
•  
• ExampleA couple is refused fertility treatment
  because they are lesbians. This is direct
  discrimination.
•  
• ExampleA doctor strikes a patient off his list
  because he comes out as a gay man. This is direct
  discrimination.

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10 Point Action Plan

• Understand the law
• Develop appropriate policies and practices
• Communicate changes
• Make a business case for diversity
• Set up a lesbian, gay and bisexual network group
• Gain support of senior staff
• Tackle harassment and bullying
• Manage performance fairly
• Build a culture of respect
• Monitor and evaluate policies and practices

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Other Action Points

• Do not ask personal questions unrelated to the
  job that could be taken as an intention to
  discriminate unlawfully.
• Train managers and others involved in
  decision-making processes such as recruitment and
  selection to ensure that they are aware of issues
  that could arise in relation to sexual
  orientation claims.
• Investigate any complaints of sexual orientation
  discrimination promptly and seriously and take
  appropriate action.
• Ensure that personal information is kept
  confidential.
• Consider monitoring by sexual orientation.

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Information

• The Gay and Lesbian Association of Doctors and
  Dentists (GLADD) has produced a guidance on
  avoiding sexual orientation discrimination.
• It includes information on
• dignity at work for lesbian and gay students at
  medical and dental schools
• dignity at work for lesbian and gay doctors and
  dentists employed by NHS trusts and
• dignity at work for GLADD members.

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Information

• The British Medical Association (BMA) has
  produced guidance that sets out the legislation
  on sexual orientation discrimination together
  with methods and ideas for devising and
  implementing an equality and diversity strategy
  for doctors.

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Questions and Answers
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Thanks for Listening