Solicitor warns of Equality Act ‘confusion’

A solicitor has claimed that many UK companies are concerned about the potential implications of the new Equality Act and suggested there may be teething problems in the early stages of its implementation.

The legislation comes into effect from today (October 1st 2010) and Brethertons employment expert Michelle Morgan warned that the regulations may cause some "confusion and frustration" for businesses across the country.

"Employers will have to review existing policies and processes currently in use," she said. "The Act embodies new policy initiatives, with the aim of extending equality and fairness in both private and public sector organisations."

However, Ms Morgan added that some of the rules contained within the legislation are little different to existing provisions and said firms should already have anti-discrimination measures in place.

Get our essential weekday HR news and updates. Phone This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Work Email Keep up with the latest in HR... This field is hidden when viewing the form Optin_form This field is hidden when viewing the form Optin_date Year Month Day This field is hidden when viewing the form Batch_Newsletter

Last month, law group DLA Piper suggested that employers may not have been given sufficient time to adjust to the Equality Act, with guidance only issued ten days before its introduction.

Posted by Hayley Edwards