What Is Sexual Orientation Discrimination At Work?

No matter the sector, employers are responsible for preventing discrimination in the workplace and should take action to build an inclusive culture. 

So, what is sexual orientation discrimination in the workplace? In short, sexual orientation discrimination at work ‘is when you are treated unfairly because of your sexual orientation’ and can be direct or indirect.

Your sexual orientation depends on whether you’re emotionally, romantically, or sexually attracted to your own sex (heterosexual), the opposite sex (homosexual), your own sex and the opposite sex (bisexual), or an attraction to all genders (pansexual) to name a few examples. 

In the UK, the Equality Act (2010) prohibits discrimination due to a person’s sexual orientation, someone believing that a person has a sexual orientation, or someone being connected to a person who has a particular sexual orientation. 

However, this doesn’t mean that this type of discrimination doesn’t still occur, and all employers are required to provide a safe and inclusive workplace for their employees.

How To Prevent Sexual Orientation Discrimination 

Taking action to support members of the LGBTQ+ community in the workplace is essential not only to cultivate an inclusive workplace but also to prevent the likelihood of discrimination claims being made.

There are numerous ways you can take steps to prevent sexual orientation discrimination in the workplace as an employer.

These steps include, but are not limited to:

1. Adopt anti-discrimination policies 
2. Provide anti-discrimination training for all staff
3. Be gender-neutral where possible
4. Make sure all employees know how to report harassment, bullying, or discrimination

1. Adopt Anti-Discrimination Policies 

To prevent sexual orientation discrimination at work it’s crucial to adopt inclusive, anti-discrimination policies.

Anti-discrimination policies demonstrate to your employees that you’re morally and legally dedicated to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace for every employee.

These policies should clearly detail that harassment and discriminatory behaviour based on an employee’s sexual orientation is unlawful and will not be tolerated.  

Make sure that employees are aware of the process of making a claim and the consequences associated with sexual orientation discrimination in the workplace. 

You will also need to ensure that any documentation is easy for employees to access as and when they need to. 

If you’d like to create your own policy, Harding Evans’ highly trained employment solicitors can discuss this with you to ensure clear anti-discrimination policies are drafted.

Contact our team of employment solicitors today.

2. Provide Anti-Discrimination Training For All Staff 

A way to prevent sexual orientation discrimination at work is to provide regular anti-discrimination training for all staff in conjunction with anti-discrimination policies. 

For instance, training topics might cover gender-neutral language, LGBTQ+ terminology, how to be an ally, and addressing implicit bias to name a few important topics.

Businesses should hire trained speakers to carry out this training and educate managers and employees on how to create an accepting environment that embraces diversity.

Additionally, you can bolster employees learning by setting up an LGBTQ+ library resource, with books, articles, and other educational resources that all employees can access to embolden them to challenge cases of workplace sexual orientation discrimination. 

Anti-discrimination training and education, then, can help to foster an inclusive workplace that supports LGBTQ+ employees.

3. Be Gender-Neutral Where Possible

A way to prevent sexual orientation discrimination at work is to be gender-neutral where possible.

If you have a dress code for your office, the dress code expectations should be reviewed to exclude any gender stereotypes.

For instance, men shouldn’t be required to wear suits and women shouldn’t be required to wear dresses,  as this is based on gender stereotypes.

Additionally, you can implement gender-neutral bathrooms throughout the workspace.

This will help to ensure you are being inclusive of all genders and identities in your business.

4. Make Sure All Employees Know How To Report Harassment, Bullying, Or Discrimination

All employees should know how to report harassment, bullying, or discrimination at work. 

As we’ve mentioned above, you’ll need to make sure that you have a process in place for investigating all claims of sexual orientation discrimination and that disciplinary action is taken. 

Businesses should be committed to solving any complaints that are made efficiently.

Proactively dealing with all complaints is essential to ensure LGBTQ+ employees feel seen and heard not only following a complaint but also in the workplace in general.

This will empower individuals to report any instances of harassment, bullying, or discrimination and will deter others from behaving inappropriately. 

How We Can Help 

At Harding Evans, we are proud to be able to stand by the side of the LGBTQ+ communities across South Wales and beyond.

Our specialist Employment Law lawyers are experienced in LGBTQ+ discrimination and you can trust them to deal with your case with understanding and empathy.

Get in touch with a member of our team today.