Page 6 - Race Equality Highway Code Pocket Book

The Equality Act 2010, Race and Discrimination
As a starting point it is useful to consider the definition of race in the

Equality Act 2010. Race can mean:

• colour

• nationality including your citizenship

• ethnic or national origins, which may not be the same as your
current nationality. For example, you may have Chinese national

origins and be living in Britain with a British passport.

• ethnic and racial groups, this means a group of people who all share

the same protected characteristic of ethnicity or race.

People who share these characteristics are protected in law from
behaviours that amount to discrimination, these are:

Direct discrimination:

There are three different types of direct discrimination on the grounds of

race:

• Direct discrimination – because of someone’s race

• Direct discrimination by association – because of the race of

someone they are associated with including a colleague, family
members or friends

• Direct discrimination by perception – because of how their race is

perceived by others even if this perception is correct or not

Indirect discrimination:
Where a provision, criterion or practice is applied equally to all

employees or job applicants but can have the effect of putting people

who share the protected characteristic of race at a particular

disadvantage in comparison to others. This is unless the employer is

unable to justify it.

www.equalityanddiversity.co.uk Page 6