Taking EU Equality Law to the next level: in search of coherence

EU employment equality law is the product of fifty years of law-making. This gradual evolution has led to fragmentation and differences in the protection afforded to protected grounds, often referred to as a ‘hierarchy of discrimination grounds’. This paper argues that human dignity is one of the underlying values of EU equality law, and therefore, the existence of a ‘hierarchy’ is not deliberate, but rather the accidental product of progressive waves of legislative evolution. It is thus submitted that EU equality law should keep evolving to achieve a coherent approach to address discrimination. This requires a legal framework that is logical, consistent and aligned with international human rights instruments. On this basis, the paper discusses two proposals to improve the coherence of EU employment equality law, namely, explicitly prohibiting gender identity discrimination and embracing reasonable accommodation for religious practices through a broad interpretation of the concept of indirect discrimination

Regulating the use of full face covering veil: which model should Spain adopt?

In view of the full veil regulations proposals’ which have been launched in Spain and other European countries, this piece of work analyses the potential legal basis for adopting this type of norms in Spanish law, having also a look to other comparative law solutions’. The article challenges the real need for this type of regulation and suggests the “proportionality test” as an alternative resort for those cases where the use of the full veil collides with the protection of the public order

The effectiveness of the EU race equality directive at national level. A comparative study of British and Spanish legislation and policies

The EU Race Equality Directive (RED) was adopted in 2000 to foster the development of a basic legal framework to address racism and, more generally, to put into effect the principle of equal treatment at national level. However, there are some concerns that the effects of the RED have not been as far-reaching as expected. Through a comparative study between Britain and Spain, this thesis analyses whether the RED has triggered effective legislation and policies in these jurisdictions, and which factors and actors may be relevant to improve the effectiveness of racial equality legislation and policies. Initially, the thesis acknowledges that the RED’s potential to trigger effective regulatory strategies at national level is constrained by its underlying enforcement model, based mainly on individual litigation. Building upon the theory of the Social Working of Law, the concept of effectiveness is defined as the combination of ‘ex-ante effectiveness’, which contributes to preventing discrimination, and ‘ex-post effectiveness’, which minimises the negative effects that discrimination has on victims, once it has occurred. This distinction is used to frame the comparative analysis, which is conducted in three building blocks. Firstly, it is argued that formal adjudication has intrinsic limitations because victims bear the burden to initiate legal proceedings but, at the same time, the system deters them from doing so. Secondly, it is submitted that a diverse network of advice-providers (ie equality bodies, trade unions and NGOs) and an appropriate use of Alternative Dispute Resolution mechanisms can contribute to improving ex-post effectiveness. Finally, this thesis also recognises the importance that employers’ policies can have in preventing discrimination, such as those derived from positive duties, collective bargaining and voluntary initiatives. However, the thesis also concedes that the effectiveness of employers’ policies largely depends on the regulatory framework, social awareness about racial discrimination and workforce participation