Discrimination

Discrimination is the prejudicial or distinguishing treatment of an individual based on his or her membership - or perceived membership - in a certain group or category. It involves the group's initial reaction or interaction, influencing the individual's actual behavior towards the group or the group leader, restricting members of one group from opportunities or privileges that are available to another group, leading to the exclusion of the individual or entities based on logical or irrational decision making. One of the major headline in the Employment Tribunals in and around Europe.

The concept of discrimination in the common law principles of freedom of contract applies equally to employment contracts and, as such, at common law the employer can employ, or refuse to employ, anyone whatever the case/reason he/she wishes, including reasons based on the sex or race of that person.  This concept has raised a lot of questions in both the public and private sectors, however mainly the private sectors since they have bespoke hierachies that include recommended/proven(with a reputable track record) personnel.

These propositions nowadays, however would offend most people's sense of fairness and over the past 30-odd years the law has sought to intervene to restrict an employer from exercising his common law rights. Even when the law has changed over the years, these measures are still in place prevaricatedly because the law can only go to as where you can prove that these disciminations have actually been used against anyone.

The original moving force to bring in legislation in this area came from international law. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948 states that everyone is entitled to all rights and freedoms 'without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinions of national or social origin, property, birth or status'. Such statements are reiterated by the International Labour Organisations Conventions 1958 and 1980(ILOC). However, without a single shred of doubt, the most important influence on national law has been the UK membership of the European Community which overrides a lot of its legislation to accommodate the European Community.