MOrsel: Draft Prevention of Discrimination (Guernsey) Ordinance, 2022 submitted to the Legislation Review Panel

The draft Prevention of Discrimination (Guernsey) Ordinance, 2022 has been approved by The Committee for Employment & Social Security for submission to the Legislation Review Panel. Subject to any amendments recommended by the Panel, it is likely the final Ordinance will be submitted to the States for debate at their September meeting. The current draft has a commencement date of 1st October 2023 to ensure businesses have time to prepare for the new legislation.

It is currently expected that the protected grounds of religious belief, sexual orientation, carer status, race and disability will be in force in October 2023, with the protected ground of age, the replacement of the Sex Discrimination Ordinance, following in Phase Two.

A few important amendments have been made to this latest draft, for example clarification in the definition of disability that medical evidence may be sought and clarification that awards are 'up to' 6 months' pay rather than simply 6 months' pay. The full revised draft Ordinance is available at gov.gg/discrimination.

The key areas of focus for employers will be 1) reviewing policies and procedures 2) training staff and 3) preparing to be able to offer reasonable adjustments. Once the final legislation has been approved, we will hold a round table session for training and discussion, but in the meantime if you have any questions regarding the draft legislation please do get in touch.