SEX EQUALITY: 30 YEARS ON

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SEX EQUALITY 30 YEARS ON

• ROBIN ALLEN QC
• CLOISTERS

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Why are we all celebrating 30 years of
legislation ?

• Equal Treatment Directive
• Sex Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order     

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The Political Context

• The economy a total mess!
• Social life flippant and the anarchic
• Serious political violence
• But also a time of hope with the first Fair
  Employment legislation

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Effectiveness

• Pay equality is a zero sum game
• Still huge problems
• Northern Ireland women still get 100 a week or
  37 less than their male colleagues

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Defrenne v. Sabena - 1976

• Direct effect of EC law
• First case of multiple discrimination

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Justification for pay differences between men and
women

• Pay inequalities must always be objectively
  justified.
• Fernandez, Sharp and Cadman

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Baker, King and Barton

• Fitting In
• Inferential reasoning
• Reversing the Burden of Proof

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Webb v. EMO

• No man is comparable to a pregnant woman!

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Shamoon

• No need to spend endless time hypothecating a
  comparator
• The reason why question explains how another
  person of a different gender would be treated

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Johnston

• The European Convention on Human Rights is
  central to EC equality law

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Final comments

• No time for Gillespie, or Pickstone or Marshall!!
• Power sharing between men and women happening in
  Europe and time to make it happen here!!

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SEX EQUALITY 30 YEARS ON

• ROBIN ALLEN QC
• CLOISTERS