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Gender Discrimination in Education

September 23rd, 2006 Posted by Nicole

Gender discrimination in education is a very common occurrence that is brought about because of traditional views on the nature of the “nurturing” female and the tough male. While gender discrimination is not warranted and is, in most cases, entirely illegal and is publishable under the terms of the law.

Attention was brought to gender discrimination in the workplace in the UK in 1975 when the Equal Opportunities Commission established the Sex Discrimination Act. The Sex Discrimination Act attempted to do away with Gender discrimination in Education in part by simply making it illegal to discriminate against anyone on the grounds of his or her gender. This act applies not only to hiring, but also to training, education and the goods provided.

The major benefit of the act is that it provides the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) with the power to regulate gender discrimination and to oversee claims. Some of the things that the EOC may do in response to a claim or of its own free will include: conducting formal investigations and issuing reports, issue non-discriminatory notices, bring proceedings in the court and respond to such claims. As such, the EOC has a stake in regulating gender discrimination in education.

All places of work, including educational institutions, are required to post labor law posters in the workplace in a location that is highly visible to all people. These labor law posters outline labor laws that pertain to employees. Included in those labor law posters is information about gender discrimination in the workplace. The educational workplace is no exception to these laws.

The labor law posters not only contain information about labor laws, but they also contain contact information for state and federal agencies that regulate labor laws. As such, employees have all of the necessary information in order to file a claim with either agency if they feel that they have had their rights violated.