Discrimination can be either direct or indirect.

The concept of direct discrimination, victimisation and harassment applies to discrimination related to gender, being married or having a civil partner, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation, age and disability.

You are eligible to make a claim for discrimination if you are a job applicant, apprentice, employee, former employee, contract worker, or working on a contract personally to execute work.

There is no minimum length of service required.

To be successful in a claim for Direct Discrimination, you must be able to show that:

• You received less favourable treatment because of a protected characteristic, for example, race or age, etc.
• The treatment was different to others. It is not enough to be simply unfair treatment, you have to show that the treatment was a result of one of the factors noted above.
• You have a comparator. It is useful (but not essential) to find a real-life comparator.

Indirect discrimination is where your employer has applied a provision/criteria or practice which disadvantages you and which would tend to disadvantage others of your race, sex, age, etc. It is not unlawful if your employer can justify the provision or practice by showing that it is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.