Iam often asked how far an employer may go when prescribing what staff wear at work. The starting point is simple: every organisation is entitled to project a particular image, promote safety or hygiene, and ensure that employees present themselves in a way that supports legitimate business interests. However, any workplace dress policy must also sit comfortably within the Equality Act 2010 , which forbids discrimination on the basis of protected characteristics such as sex, age, disability, race, religion or belief, gender reassignment and sexual orientation . The moment a policy, even inadvertently, places a disproportionate burden on a particular group, it veers into unlawful territory.

Under the act, direct discrimination (for instance, telling women to wear revealing clothing)

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