Employment discrimination law in the European Union
Encyclopedia
The Article 13 of the Treaty of Amsterdam, entered into force in 1999, granted the European Union
some powers to combat discrimination on the basis of:
The Current legislation comprises two European directives.
The Directives were agreed by all EU Member States in 2000. Each Member State was then obliged to incorporate these new laws into their national legislation.
, social security
, healthcare and access to goods and services.
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
some powers to combat discrimination on the basis of:
- Race or ethnic origin,
- SexSexIn biology, sex is a process of combining and mixing genetic traits, often resulting in the specialization of organisms into a male or female variety . Sexual reproduction involves combining specialized cells to form offspring that inherit traits from both parents...
, PregnancyPregnancyPregnancy refers to the fertilization and development of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, in a woman's uterus. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets... - sexual orientationSexual orientationSexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
- ReligionReligionReligion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
or belief - DisabilityDisabilityA disability may be physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional, developmental or some combination of these.Many people would rather be referred to as a person with a disability instead of handicapped...
(physical or mental, including HIVHIVHuman immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
status) - AgeAgeingAgeing or aging is the accumulation of changes in a person over time. Ageing in humans refers to a multidimensional process of physical, psychological, and social change. Some dimensions of ageing grow and expand over time, while others decline...
The Current legislation comprises two European directives.
The Directives were agreed by all EU Member States in 2000. Each Member State was then obliged to incorporate these new laws into their national legislation.
The Employment Equality Directive (2000/78)
Protects everyone in the EU from discrimination based on age, disability, sexual orientation and religion or belief in the workplace.The Racial Equality Directive (2000/43)
Prohibits discrimination on the grounds of racial or ethnic origin in the workplace as well as in other areas of life such as educationEducation
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
, social security
Social security
Social security is primarily a social insurance program providing social protection or protection against socially recognized conditions, including poverty, old age, disability, unemployment and others. Social security may refer to:...
, healthcare and access to goods and services.
Internal links
- Equality Act 2010
- UK labour law
- European labour lawEuropean labour lawEuropean labour law is the developing field of laws relating to rights of employment and partnership at work within the European Union and countries adhering to the European Convention on Human Rights.-Treaties:...
- List of European Union directives
External links
- Homepage of the Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities http://ec.europa.eu/social/home.jsp?langId=en
- Text of the Directive: html | pdf
- European Commission Anti-discrimination