Gender equality duty 

 

The gender equality duty is a legal obligation which came into force in April 2007. It was introduced by the Equality Act 2006, which in turn amended the Sex Discrimination Act 1975.

The gender equality duty requires public authorities to promote equality between men and women and eliminate unlawful sex discrimination. Instead of depending on individuals making complaints about sex discrimination, the duty places the legal responsibility on public sector organisations, authorities and institutions to demonstrate that they actively promote equality between men and women. The duty affects policy making, public services such as transport, and employment practices such as recruitment and flexible working.

Of course, the way in which public authorities carry out their functions and services can vary, but all public authorities need to take account of their duties to promote gender equality.

For more details download the gender equality document.

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Gender equality: general duty

Under the gender equality duty, all public authorities must meet the general duty, which requires them to have due regard to the need to:

  • eliminate unlawful discrimination and harassment
  • promote equality of opportunity between men and women.

The general duty applies to all public authorities, wherever they are based in Britain.


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Gender equality: specific duties

Public authorities with a duty to publish a gender equality scheme also have a range of specific duties that help them to meet their general duty to promote gender equality. The statutory code of practice for England and Wales summarises the duties as follows:

  • To prepare and publish a gender equality scheme, showing how the public authority will meet its general and specific duties, and setting out its gender equality objectives.
  • In formulating its overall objectives, to consider the need to include objectives to address the causes of any gender pay gap.
  • To gather and use information on how its policies and practices affect gender equality in the workforce and in the delivery of services.
  • To consult stakeholders (that is, employees, service users and others, including trade unions) and take account of relevant information in order to determine its gender equality objectives.
  • To assess the impact of its current and proposed policies and practices on gender equality.
  • To implement the actions set out in its gender equality scheme within three years, unless it is unreasonable or impracticable to do so.
  • To report against the scheme every year and review the scheme at least every three years.


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Variations by country: Scotland

Scottish specific duties differ to those that apply for England. Information about Scottish authorities covered by the duties is contained in the statutory code of practice for Scotland but, in summary, those public authorities must:

  • gather information on how their work affects women and men
  • consult employees, service users, trade unions and other stakeholders
  • assess the different impact of policies and practices on both sexes and use this information to inform their work
  • identify priorities and set gender equality objectives
  • plan and take action to achieve gender equality objectives
  • have published a gender equality scheme by 29 June 2007, report annually, and review progress every three years
  • have published an equal pay policy statement (for listed authorities with more than 150 staff) by 28 September 2007, and report on progress every three years.

There are also additional duties for certain Scottish public authorities. Education authorities will be required, as well as publishing their own scheme, to ensure that the schools they manage gather information on the effects of their policies and practices on gender equality, assess the impact of those policies and practices on gender equality, carry out steps to meet the duty, and report on these activities.

There is also an additional duty on Scottish ministers. Under this duty, from 1 July 2010, Scottish ministers will have to publish reports every three years that:

  • set out the priority areas that ministers have identified for the advancement of gender equality by public authorities in Scotland
  • provide a summary of progress made by public authorities in these priority areas.

This duty is additional to the responsibility of the Scottish Executive under the specific duty to produce a gender equality scheme.


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Variations by country: Wales

The statutory code of practice to promote gender equality covers both England and Wales. However, the Welsh specific duties will not be finalised before April 2008 at the earliest. The list of Welsh authorities covered by the specific duties will be published when the specific duties are finalised. Until they have been developed, the Welsh Assembly Government is advising public authorities in Wales to:

  • develop a gender equality scheme outlining their gender equality objectives and the action that is being taken to achieve them, in the interests of clarity and transparency
  • prioritise action to address the most significant gender inequalities within their remit and take actions that are likely to deliver the best gender equality outcomes.


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