Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED)

The public sector equality duty (PSED) was formed under the Equality Act 2010, beginning April 2011. It replaced, harmonised and extended the race, disability and gender equality duties through specific ‘protected’ characteristics which would be covered by the duty. Essentially, PSED is a legal obligation, concerned with equality and good relations in the day to day business of public authorities and compliance can be reflected through the design, implementation and review of organisational policies. Before PSED, equality legislation focused primarily on resolving discrimination cases after they had occurred in the workplace, whereas PSED was designed to advance equality by creating a culture of preventative measures to stop discrimination and harassment from occurring in the first place. In particular, this can be achieved by identifying the needs of those considered to have protected characteristics, and the disadvantages they are likely to suffer because of those needs. The responsibility to actively promote equality also places an onus on individuals however, as those with protected characteristics are encouraged to participate in public life where their participation is considered or likely to be disproportionately low. PSED consists of a general equality duty which

Meeting the needs of individuals will clearly require a consideration for their circumstances (e.g. the nature of a particular disability or understanding cultural characteristics) in order to create positive relations and understanding between different people. There are therefore, nine protected characteristics covered by the duty: age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion (or belief), sex and sexual orientation. Public authorities also have a responsibility to prevent discrimination based on one’s civil partnership or marriage