The new guidance on positive action is part of the government’s ongoing Inclusive Britain strategy and is intended to support employers to create opportunities for underrepresented groups within their workforce. Although part of the Inclusive Britain initiative, the guidance is not just about measures to improve ethnic diversity - it covers all protected characteristics including sex, sexual orientation, age and ethnicity. As we explore in this article, the guidance clarifies a few key points but largely repeats earlier publications and does not address many of the issues that arise in practice.
Positive action in the workplace involves taking targeted steps to address underrepresentation or disadvantage experienced by people with characteristics protected by the Equality Act 2010. It generated mainstream interest following the introduction of gender pay gap reporting, as companies looked for ways in which they could close stubborn gender pay gaps. More recently, companies have launched positive action programmes focussed on improving ethnic diversity within their workforces. If ethnicity pay gap reporting becomes more widespread, these programmes are likely to grow (we’ve written about the new ethnicity pay gap reporting guidance here).
There are two types of lawful positive action in British employment...
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