Commissioner for Human Rights

What is unequal treatment?

Data:
  • DIRECT DISCRIMINATION
    is a situation where a given person was, is or would be treated less favourably than another person in a comparable situation, in particular on the grounds of sex, race, ethnic origin, nationality, religion, denomination, beliefs, age, disability or sexual orientation
    Examples: an employer refusing to employ a person due to his/her ethnic or national origin, despite the fact that he/she has equal or higher professional qualifications; refusal to admit a child with chronic diabetes to school; employing only men for managerial positions
  • INDIRECT DISCRIMINATION
    is a situation where an apparently neutral provision, decision or criterion would make the conditions unfavourable for a given person due to a feature such as sex, race, ethnic origin, nationality, religion, denomination, beliefs, age, disability or sexual orientation
    Examples: an employer publishes a job offer containing information that he/she “forms a young and energetic team,” which excludes older persons who would like to apply for the given job; lack of necessary facilities for the disabled in a workplace

  • HARASSMENT
    violation of a person’s dignity or creating unfriendly or humiliating atmosphere for such person
    Examples: hospital personnel addressing a patient in an offensive and abusive way because of his/her race; making jokes about people of non-Polish ethnic origin or placing such jokes on an announcement board at work
  • SEXUAL HARASSMENT
     

  • ENCOURAGING OR ORDERING ACTIVITIES MENTIONED ABOVE