Sex Discrimination (Indirect Discrimination and Burden of Proof) Regulations 2001
2001No. 2660
SEX DISCRIMINATION
The Sex Discrimination (Indirect Discrimination and Burden of Proof) Regulations 2001
20thJuly2001
20thJuly2001
12thOctober2001
The Secretary of State, being a Minister designated for the purposes of section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972( 1) in relation to measures relating to sex discrimination in matters of employment, self-employment and vocational training( 2), hereby makes the following regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by that section.
Citation, interpretation and extent
1. - (1) These regulations may be cited as the Sex Discrimination (Indirect Discrimination and Burden of Proof) Regulations 2001.
(2) In these regulations "the 1975 Act" means the Sex Discrimination Act 1975( 3).
(3) These regulations shall extend to Great Britain only.
Commencement and transitional provisions
2. - (1) These regulations shall come into force on 12th October 2001 (in this regulation referred to as "the commencement date").
(2) Regulations 5 and 6 apply in relation to proceedings instituted before the commencement date, as well as those instituted on or after that date, but do not affect any case in which proceedings in the employment tribunal, county court or sheriff court were determined before the commencement date.
Sex discrimination
3. For section 1 of the 1975 Act there is substituted -
"Direct and indirect discrimination against women
1. - (1) In any circumstances relevant for the purposes of any provision of this Act, other than a provision to which subsection (2) applies, a person discriminates against a woman if -
(a) on the ground of her sex he treats her less favourably than he treats or would treat a man, or(b) he applies to her a requirement or condition which he applies or would apply equally to a man but - (i) which is such that the proportion of women who can comply with it is considerably smaller than the proportion of men who can comply with it, and(ii) which he cannot show to be justifiable irrespective of the sex of the person to whom it is applied, and(iii) which is to her detriment because she cannot comply with it.(2) In any circumstances relevant for the purposes of a provision to which this subsection applies, a person discriminates against a woman if -
(a) on the ground of her sex, he treats her less favourably than he treats or would treat a man, or(b) he applies to her a provision, criterion or practice which he applies or would apply equally to a man, but - (i) which is such that it would be to the detriment of a considerably larger proportion of women than of men, and(ii) which he cannot show to be justifiable irrespective of the sex of the person to whom it is applied, and(iii) which is to her detriment.(3) Subsection (2) applies to -
(a) any provision of Part 2,(b) sections 35A and 35B( 4), and(c) any other provision of Part 3, so far as it applies to vocational training.(4) If a person treats or would treat a man differently according to the man's marital status, his treatment of a woman is for the purposes of subsection (1)(a) or (2)(a) to be compared to his treatment of a man having the like marital status."
Discrimination against married persons
4. For section 3 of the 1975 Act there is substituted -
"Direct and indirect discrimination against married persons in employment field
3. - (1) In any circumstances relevant for the purposes of any provision of Part 2, a person discriminates against a married person of either sex if -
(a) on the ground of his or her marital status he treats that person less favourably than he treats or would treat an unmarried person of the same sex, or(b) he applies to that person a provision, criterion or practice which he applies or would apply equally to an unmarried person, but - (i) which is such that it would be to the detriment of a considerably larger proportion of married persons than of unmarried persons of the same sex, and(ii) which he cannot show to be justifiable irrespective of the marital status of the person to whom it is applied, and(iii) which is to that person's detriment.(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), a provision of Part 2 framed with reference to discrimination against women shall be treated as applying equally to the treatment of men, and for that purpose shall have effect with such modifications as are requisite."
Burden of proof: employment tribunals
5. After section 63 of the 1975 Act there is inserted -
"Burden of proof: employment tribunals
63A. - (1) This section applies to any...
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