Discrimination, Harassment and Victimisation Training
Practical Equality Act training covering discrimination, harassment, victimisation, protected characteristics, workplace behaviour and inclusive practice.
Practical Equality Act training covering discrimination, harassment, victimisation, protected characteristics, workplace behaviour and inclusive practice.
Discrimination, harassment and victimisation can harm individuals, undermine trust and expose organisations and individuals to legal and reputational risk. This practical course gives delegates a clear and accessible understanding of key Equality Act 2010 concepts and how they can arise through workplace decisions, behaviour, communication and organisational practices. Participants explore protected characteristics, direct and indirect discrimination, harassment, victimisation, association and perception through realistic workplace examples. The course also considers stereotypes, bias, exclusion and microaggressions, while explaining important distinctions between legal terminology and the everyday language people may use to describe unfair or inappropriate treatment. Delegates leave better equipped to recognise risk, speak up, receive concerns appropriately and contribute to fair, respectful and inclusive workplaces.
People experiencing problems at work do not necessarily use legal terminology. Someone may describe what has happened as discrimination, harassment, bullying, unfair treatment, inappropriate behaviour, exclusion, bias, victimisation or simply say that they feel they have been treated differently.
Those descriptions should be taken seriously, but they do not all mean the same thing. The Equality Act 2010 provides specific legal concepts and tests for different forms of unlawful treatment. Understanding those distinctions helps organisations recognise potential risks, respond more fairly and avoid both dismissing genuine concerns and applying legal labels inaccurately.
This course connects legal understanding with everyday workplace practice. Delegates examine how decisions, policies, behaviour, communication, stereotypes and organisational practices can disadvantage people, and consider what individuals and organisations can do to prevent discrimination, promote dignity and respond appropriately when concerns arise.
An organisation applies the same workplace requirement to everyone, but an employee says the rule places them at a particular disadvantage because of a protected characteristic.
An employee reports repeated offensive comments and says they are being harassed. The organisation needs to understand both the behaviour and whether Equality Act considerations arise.
An employee raises a discrimination concern and later believes they are being excluded from opportunities because they complained.
Terms such as discrimination, harassment and victimisation are frequently used in everyday conversation, but they also have specific meanings under equality law. Accurate understanding matters because incorrect terminology can create confusion about what has happened, what responsibilities arise and how an organisation should respond.
For example, victimisation does not simply mean that somebody has been treated badly, bullied or regarded as a victim. Under the Equality Act, victimisation concerns detriment connected with a protected act. Similarly, harassment has a particular legal test and should not be used as a catch-all description for every upsetting, disrespectful or inappropriate workplace interaction.
The course also considers behaviours such as microaggressions, stereotyping and subtle exclusion. These can have a significant cumulative impact on belonging, confidence and opportunity and may contribute to discriminatory outcomes. However, the term “microaggression” is not itself a separate statutory Equality Act claim. The emphasis throughout the course is therefore on understanding behaviour, impact and context while using legal concepts accurately.
Develop a clear understanding of the purpose and scope of the Equality Act 2010 in employment, including the nine protected characteristics and the importance of applying equality principles in everyday workplace practice.
Explore how direct and indirect discrimination can arise through decisions, requirements, policies and workplace practices, using realistic examples to distinguish the different concepts.
Examine unwanted conduct, dignity and hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environments, including the relevance of protected characteristics, impact, intention and context.
Explore protected acts, detriment and retaliation. Distinguish Equality Act victimisation from the broader everyday use of the word and consider why people must be able to raise equality concerns without fear of adverse treatment.
Consider how stereotypes, bias, microaggressions and subtle exclusion can affect workplace experiences and contribute to harmful or potentially discriminatory outcomes, even where exclusion is not immediately obvious.
Connect legal understanding with practical action, including speaking up, receiving concerns, confidentiality, non-retaliation, fair response principles, support and organisational learning.
By the end of the course, participants will be able to:
This course is suitable for organisations seeking stronger understanding of Equality Act discrimination, harassment and victimisation and how these concepts apply to everyday workplace practice. It is particularly relevant for:
Where an individual requires confidential, tailored development following an allegation, complaint or identified concern about their own workplace behaviour, our one-to-one workplace behaviour training provides a more appropriate intervention.
Participants gain legally accurate foundations, greater confidence in recognising equality risks and a clearer understanding of how discrimination, harassment and victimisation can arise in everyday workplace decisions, communication, behaviour and organisational practices.
Organisations benefit from greater consistency in equality understanding, more accurate use of terminology and increased confidence in prevention, speaking up and receiving concerns. The course connects legal responsibilities with practical action, helping organisations strengthen dignity, fairness, inclusion and trust.
This course provides equality and inclusion training rather than legal advice and does not qualify participants to conduct workplace investigations. Specialist HR or legal advice should be obtained for complex or live cases where appropriate.
Workplace concerns are described in many different ways. Choose the course that most closely reflects the issue you want to address.
Choose this course when detailed understanding of Equality Act discrimination, harassment, victimisation and protected characteristics is required.
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Choose this course when the priority is recognising, preventing and responding to bullying, intimidation, undermining, exclusion or misuse of power.
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Choose this course when managers or staff need practical skills to address inappropriate, unacceptable or difficult behaviour early and prevent escalation.
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Choose this course when the priority is workplace humour, joking, teasing, boundaries, inclusion and understanding when banter may cross a line.
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Choose this service when an individual requires tailored learning and development following an allegation, complaint, organisational process or identified concern about their workplace behaviour.
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All our courses are tailored to ensure the training reflects your organisation’s goals and priorities. Whether you need a single session for one team or a programme of sessions across a larger workforce, we can develop a delivery approach that works for your organisation.
The course can be delivered face-to-face or online via Zoom or Teams.
To support participation, discussion and interaction, we recommend the following group sizes per session:
Need to train a larger workforce? No problem. We regularly work with organisations that need to train larger numbers of employees. Where appropriate, training can be delivered across multiple sessions to ensure everyone receives the same high-quality, interactive learning experience. We can develop a delivery programme to suit your workforce size, locations and timescales.
We can also adapt group size, session format and delivery arrangements to support accessibility, reasonable adjustments and specific organisational requirements.
Please note: the half-day rate is not always available for face-to-face sessions.
Over 25 years' experience delivering equality, diversity and inclusion training, consultancy and professional development.
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