Business Studies Collins Revision Guide. - StudyGuide.PK

EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT (3)Equal opportunities●●●Equal opportunities means that all individuals have equal rightsregardless of their:■ gender■ sexual orientation■ age■ physical characteristics■ religion■ racial group.There are not laws regarding all of these, for example employerscan specify a particular age of employee that they wish to recruit.Equal opportunities legislation works in the interest of both theemployer and employee because the best person for the job should bechosen. Some jobs have traditionally been done by a certain gender ofworker and there can be a feeling that despite the statement on a jobadvertisement, indirect discrimination takes place. Equal opportunityis not the same as positive discrimination where there is a biastowards the characteristics previously discriminated against.Protecting the consumer● Businesses are also affected by laws protecting consumers fromdamaging their health or safety and from businesses exaggeratingthe qualities of their products. An example of such a law is theFood and Drugs Act 1955/1984, which states that it is illegal to sellgoods that are ‘unfit for human consumption’. It also protectsconsumers from businesses describing a product unfairly.● There are also laws protecting the consumer that relate to accuratelabelling of goods, including statements such as ‘Contains 40%orange juice’, and the country of origin for goods not produced inthe UK.87