Genuine Occupational Requirement (GOR)

Exceptions to the law regarding discrimination are permissible in those cases where someone’s gender, race, religion or belief, or sexual orientation is genuinely needed for them to be able to carry out their duties. What employers may legitimately claim as a GOR for a job varies according to the characteristic being discriminated on. However, in general the onus is on the employer to demonstrate that the characteristic concerned is a genuine requirement for the job, crucial to the job’s performance, and that it is proportionate to apply the requirement in the case in question. Further information is given in the later section on Discrimination.

For example, it would be a Genuine Occupational Requirement to request an individual to provide personal services to people from a particular racial group, defined by colour or nationality, in order to promote their welfare, which only a person of the same colour or nationality can do most effectively.