Religious Discrimination and Remedies Bill

Religious Discrimination and Remedies Bill - continued	House of Commons

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	PART II
	DISCRIMINATION IN THE EMPLOYMENT FIELD
Discrimination by employers.	4. - (1) It is unlawful for a person, in relation to employment by him at an establishment in Great Britain, to discriminate against another-
	(a) in the arrangements he makes for the purpose of determining who should be offered that employment; or
	(b) in the terms on which he offers him that employment; or
	(c) by refusing or deliberately omitting to offer him that employment.
	(2) It is unlawful for a person, in the case of a person employed by him at an establishment in Great Britain, to discriminate against that employee-
	(a) in the terms of employment which he affords him; or
	(b) in the way he affords him access to opportunities for promotion, transfer or training, or to any other benefits, facilities or services, or by refusing or deliberately omitting to afford him access to them; or
	(c) by dismissing him, or subjecting him to any other detriment.
	(3) Except in relation to discrimination falling within section 2, subsections (1) and (2) do not apply to employment for the purposes of a private household.
	(4) Subsection (2) does not apply to benefits, facilities or services of any description if the employer is concerned with the provision (for payment or not) of benefits, facilities or services of that description to the public, or to a section of the public comprising the employee in question, unless-
	(a) that provision differs in a material respect from the provision of the benefits, facilities or services by the employer to his employee; or
	(b) the provision of the benefits, facilities or services to the employee in question is regulated by his contract of employment; or
	(c) the benefits, facilities or services relate to training.
Exceptions for genuine occupational qualifications.	5. - (1) In relation to religious discrimination-
	(a) section 4(1)(a) or (c) does not apply to any employment where being of a particular religious belief is a genuine occupational qualification for the job; and
	(b) section 4(2)(b) does not apply to opportunities for promotion or transfer to, or training for, such employment.
	(2) Being of a particular religious belief is a genuine occupational qualification for a job only where-
	(a) the job involves participation in acts of religious worship in a capacity for which a person of that religious belief is required for doctrinal reasons; or
	(b) the job involves particular activities which for doctrinal reasons are required to be performed by persons of that religious belief; or
	(c) the holder of that job provides persons of that religious belief with personal services promoting their welfare, and those services can most effectively be provided by a person of that same religious belief.
	(3) Subsection (2) applies where some only of the duties fall within paragraph (a), (b) or (c) as well as where all of them do.
	(4) Paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of subsection (2) does not apply in relation to the filling of a vacancy at a time when the employer already has employees of the religious group in question-
	(a) who are capable of carrying out the duties falling within that paragraph; and
	(b) whom it would be reasonable to employ on those duties; and
	(c) whose numbers are sufficient to meet the employer's likely requirements in respect of those duties without undue inconvenience.
Discrimination against contract workers.	6. - (1) This section applies to any work for a person ("the principal") which is available for doing by individuals ("contract workers") who are employed not by the principal himself but by another person, who supplies them under a contract made with the principal.
	(2) It is unlawful for the principal, in relation to work to which this section applies, to discriminate against a contract worker-
	(a) in the terms on which he allows him to do that work; or
	(b) by not allowing him to do it or continue to do it; or
	(c) in the way in which he affords him access to any benefits, facilities or services or by refusing or deliberately omitting to afford him access to them; or
	(d) by subjecting him to any other detriment.
	(3) The principal does not contravene subsection (2)(b) by doing any act in relation to a person not of a particular religious belief at a time when, if the work were to be done by a person taken into the principal's employment, being of that religious belief would be a genuine occupational qualification for the job.
	(4) Nothing in this section shall render unlawful any act done by the principal for the benefit of a contract worker not ordinarily resident in Great Britain in or in connection with allowing him to do work to which this section applies, where the purpose of his being allowed to do that work is to provide him with training in skills which he appears to the principal to intend to exercise wholly outside Great Britain.
	(5) Subsection (2)(c) does not apply to benefits, facilities or services of any description if the principal is concerned with the provision (for payment or not) of benefits, facilities or services of that description to the public, or to a section of the public to which the contract worker in question belongs, unless that provision differs in a material respect from the provision of the benefits, facilities or services by the principal to his contract workers.
Partnerships.	7. - (1) It is unlawful for a firm consisting of six or more partners, in relation to a position as partner in the firm, to discriminate against a person-
	(a) in the arrangements they make for the purpose of determining who should be offered that position; or
	(b) in the terms on which they offer him that position; or
	(c) by refusing or deliberately omitting to offer him that position; or
	(d) in a case where the person already holds that position-
	(i) in the way they afford him access to any benefits, facilities or services, or by refusing or deliberately omitting to afford him access to them; or
	(ii) by expelling him from that position, or subjecting him to any other detriment.
	(2) Subsection (1) shall apply in relation to persons proposing to form themselves into a partnership as it applies to a firm.
	(3) Subsections 1(a) and (c) do not apply to a position as partner where, if it were employment, being of a particular religious group would be a genuine occupational qualification for the job.
	(4) In the case of a limited partnership references in this section to a partner shall be construed as references to a general partner as defined in section 3 of the Limited Partnerships Act 1907.
Trade unions etc.	8. - (1) This section applies to an organisation of workers, an organisation of employers, or any other organisation whose members carry on a particular profession or trade for the purposes of which the organisation exists.
	(2) It is unlawful for an organisation to which this section applies, in the case of a person who is not a member of the organisation, to discriminate against him-
	(a) in the terms on which it is prepared to admit him to membership; or
	(b) by refusing, or deliberately omitting to accept, his application for membership.
	(3) It is unlawful for an organisation to which this section applies, in the case of a person who is a member of the organisation, to discriminate against him-
	(a) in the way it affords him access to any benefits, facilities or services, or by refusing or deliberately omitting to afford him access to them; or
	(b) by depriving him of membership, or varying the terms on which he is a member; or
	(c) by subjecting him to any other detriment.
Qualifying bodies.	9. - (1) It is unlawful for an authority or body which can confer an authorisation or qualification which is needed for, or facilitates, engagement in a particular profession of trade to discriminate against a person-
	(a) in the terms on which it is prepared to confer on him that authorisation or qualification; or
	(b) by refusing, or deliberately omitting to grant, his application for it; or
	(c) by withdrawing it from him or varying the terms on which he holds it.
	(2) In this section-
	"authorisation or qualification" includes recognition, registration, enrolment, approval and certification;
	"confer" includes renew or extend.
Persons concerned with provision of vocational training.	10. It is unlawful, in the case of an individual seeking or undergoing training which would help to fit him for any employment, for any person who provides, or makes arrangements for the provision of, facilities for such training to discriminate against him-
	(a) in the term on which that person affords him access to any training courses or other facilities concerned with such training; or
	(b) by refusing or deliberately omitting to afford him such access; or
	(c) by terminating his training; or
	(d) by subjecting him to any detriment during the course of his training.
Employment agencies etc.	11. - (1) It is unlawful for an employment agency to discriminate against a person-
	(a) in the terms on which the agency offers to provide any of its services; or
	(b) by refusing or deliberately omitting to provide any of its services; or
	(c) in the way it provides any of its services.
	(2) It is unlawful for a local education authority or education authority or any other person to do any act in providing services in pursuance of arrangements made, or a direction given, under section 10 of the Employment and Training Act 1973 which constitutes discrimination.
	(3) References in subsection (1) to the services of an employment agency include guidance on careers and any other services related top employment.
	(4) This section does not apply if the discrimination only concerns employment which the employer could lawfully refuse to offer the person in question.
	(5) An employment agency or local education authority or other person shall not be subject to any liability under this section if it proves-
	(a) that it acted in reliance on a statement made to it by the employer to the effect that, by reason of the operation of subsection (4), its action would not be unlawful; and
	(b) that it was reasonable for it to rely on the statement.
	(6) A person who knowingly or recklessly makes a statement such as is referred to in subsection (5)(a) which in a material respect is false or misleading commits an offence, and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.

Prepared 2 July 1998