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Hi @DC_Police @DC_PCC @EHRC
The Equal Opportunities section in your job application correctly lists sex in what appears to be a list of the protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010.
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cc @dorsetpolice @PCCDorset
The Equal Opportunities section in your job application correctly lists sex in what appears to be a list of the protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010.
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cc @dorsetpolice @PCCDorset
However, you then ask for 'Gender' and include the options, 'Intersex', 'Male', 'Female' and 'Other'.
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'Gender' is not a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010 and is not defined in the Act.
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Sex is the protected characteristic and the only two possible options for sex are 'Female' and 'Male' as defined in the Act and consistent with biology. 'Other' is not a valid option.
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Intersex is not a sex class and those with a Difference of Sex Development are still considered to be of the male or female sex class. It is generally considered derogatory to those with DSDs to consider them not to be male or female.
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Asking about a personal characteristic such as 'gender' that is not a protected characteristic under the Act, may be in breach of the GDPR by processing personal - and potentially Special Category - data without a lawful basis.
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If you choose not to gather data on specific protected characteristics (such as sex), you cannot have the information required to ascertain whether or not you could be discriminating on protected characteristics in recruitment. This could be vital in an employment tribunal.
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If you choose to discriminate on characteristics that are not protected characteristics under the Act, you may inadvertently indirectly discriminate on protected grounds.
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Language and meaning of words are important and proper use & understanding of terms is vital so that the public is aware of what rights they have and what your duties are. Any confusion or inconsistency over meaning may prevent people from accessing their rights in law.
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Can you explain how you will meet your Public Sector Equality Duty given these errors and your use of incorrect terms and how you know whether you have met it in the past given your data could have been corrupted by those who didn't provide their sex?
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Will you undertake to correct these errors and to review all your other policies, documents, reports, etc to ensure compliance?
Please respond.
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Please respond.
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