Direct Discrimination vs. Indirect Discrimination

The concept of discrimination as an offense and a meaningful ground for legal action and remedy is understood in the legal system of the United Kingdom as being split into two specific subjects: direct discrimination and indirect discrimination. Either of these categories for discrimination can refer to a diverse array of factors comprising of an individual’s identity, as defined by either that person or others, and can thus be used to mount a legal action and bring compensation to the plaintiff.

Direct discrimination refers to an action which explicitly specifies the trait for which a person is being excluded or discriminated against in some way, while indirect discrimination can be determined to have occurred when some other trait which is named as being discriminated against can be reliably linked to a group vulnerable to discrimination. In enacting the latter principle of indirect discrimination, British legal theorists are believed to have drawn on the precedent of the 1964 American Civil Rights Act, as well as on decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court. 

In terms of the prevention of both direct discrimination and indirect discrimination, one of the most pertinent pieces of legislation is the Sex Discrimination Act of 1975. According to this legislation’s language on indirect discrimination, the requirement of a trait which is generally not found in women would thus constitute indirect discrimination against women. Indirect discrimination is generally held to be more applicable on a society-wide basis, while direct discrimination tends to arise instead from individually brought cases.

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