The European Union has officially adopted laws on standards for equality bodies in May 2024.
Equality bodies are public institutions that promote and defend equal treatment by providing independent assistance to discrimination victims, conducting independent surveys, publishing independent reports, and making recommendations on matters related to discrimination.
Persons with disabilities can contact equality bodies when they face discrimination based on disability, or other grounds such as age, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation – depending on the anti-discrimination law and mandate of the equality body in their country.
The new EU laws will help to strengthen the role of equality bodies and contribute to better protection against discrimination.
What will the standards bring to persons with disabilities?
The standards will ensure persons with disabilities and other victims of discrimination are better supported and protected against discrimination.
Under the new laws, Member States will need to ensure that equality bodies can provide accessibility and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. This includes “equal access to all services and activities of equality bodies” such as assistance to victims, complaint handling, alternative dispute resolution, and informational activities.
In addition, the laws include a requirement for public institutions to consult equality bodies on matters related to discrimination and for equality bodies to be empowered to carry out activities to prevent discrimination and promote equal treatment through more proactive actions.
They will also need to strengthen the role of equality bodies by providing them with sufficient human, technical, and financial resources and ensuring that they are independent from external influence.
Next steps
The directives will be signed and will enter into force following publication in the EU’s Official Journal. Member states will have two years to adapt them to their national legislation.
You can learn more about the role of equality bodies and the new standards in EDF’s upcoming events:
- Equinet: A milestone for equality rights in europe: directives on standards for equality bodies adopted!
- 23 May: When love returns. 2nd speed-dating with legislation – learn about five laws in just one event!
- 28 May: Enforcing EU law: Petitions Committee, European Ombudsman and Equality Bodies