What is it?
The new website of the Equality Tribunal, the Government-appointed independent body that hears cases of alleged discrimination.
Not to be confused with…
The Equality Authority – there is no connection between the two organisations.
Who is it for?
Employers and employees wishing to brief themselves on equality legislation; anyone who feels they may have been discriminated against. It would also be useful to journalists, researcher, lawyers and academics.
What information does it contain?
What is the difference between the Equal Status Act and the Employment Equality Act? Can discrimination cases be resolved through mediation? With whom should I lodge a complaint? What are the nine grounds for discrimination? Answers to these and many other questions are available on this impressive website. There’s also a searchable database of equality law decisions going back to 1996, as well as links to relevant websites such as the European Court of Justice. Also found on the site are forms, press releases and publications related to the equality area.
Best feature?
The number of forms available to download. For each, we are told the file size (important for those without broadband) and the number of pages – other form-heavy websites take note…
How does it look?
Webfactory has done a good job producing an attractive website that is not scared to use different coloured text and panels. As you would expect from an equality-focused website, efforts have clearly been made to make the site usable and accessible to those with disabilities as the home page bears the logo – the Web Accessibility Initiative – of the global internet standards group, W3C.
The verdict?
First among equals.
By Brian Skelly
