- Gender (including gender identity and being trans or non-binary)
- Sexual orientation
- Disability
- Age
- Race
- Religion
- Membership of the Traveller community
- Family status
- Marital status
The Equal Status Acts apply to the provision of goods and services, for example being sold something in a shop, being served in a restaurant, or getting public transport. This law also applies to education and accommodation.
There are some exceptions to these laws. For example, it is not discrimination to refuse someone alcohol if they do not have ID to prove they are aged over 18. Schools can also refuse to admit students on the basis of gender if they are an all-boys or all-girls school.
If you think you have experienced discrimination under the Equal Status Acts, you can make a complaint to the Workplace Relations Commission – more information about this can be found here.
What does this law look like in practice?
In 2018, a trans man took a case against a barber who refused to cut his hair on the basis of his gender identity. The Workplace Relations Commission found that the barber did discriminate against this customer, on the basis of the gender ground, because the customer is a trans man.
This law also covers harassment in educational establishments, including schools, colleges and universities. Harassment is any form of unwanted conduct related to one of the nine grounds which violates a person’s dignity and creates an intimidating, humiliating or offensive environment. The type of behaviour that can be considered harassment includes things that are said, written or photographed.