The Issue of Discrimination and Antidiscriminatory Practice

The issue of discrimination and antidiscriminatory practice Discrimination is the unfair treatment of a person or group deemed different from ourselves or society. Discrimination derives from our prejudices towards these groups of people who we have developed negative attitudes towards. Family, friends, workplace and society can affect these attitudes. It is part of your job as a social worker to fight discrimination where you find it and for this you adopt the theory of anti-discriminatory practice. Anti-discriminatory practice is the main strategy in combating discrimination.It takes into account how we behave towards other individuals. All employees in a care setting should promote this practice in the workplace as it is key to combating prejudice, in doing so they are trying to eradicate discrimination and promote equality for service users and for staff. 1. â€Å"Whatever the personal characteristics and needs of the individual, everyone has the same rights. Equality of care is a central value to all caring professions and is written into codes of practice and in the government's patient's charter. † Discrimination takes many different forms so carers must be vigilant.One form of discrimination that can be found in the work place is to do with gender, whereby men are favoured over women for high ranking jobs within a company. Physically disabled people face discrimination everyday when due to their condition they are unable to access facilities in their physical environment. Perhaps one of the biggest forms of prejudice in our society relates to race. People who are racially different from ourselves (e. g. coloured, Asian, Pakistani etc. ) can be deemed in some situations less desirable than a British Caucasian.They may also find it more difficult to get a job and once in this job may be met with much racial tension as with the case study below. 2. â€Å"Mr Singh had been a social worker in a local council's children's services department since 199 1. When he became a target for racist remarks by one member of staff and complained, his manager dismissed the incidents as office banter' and told Mr Singh to ignore them as the offender was due to retire shortly. Because of the way the complaint was handled, Mr Singh was branded a trouble maker', and staff relations broke down.The Industrial Tribunal found that the council did nothing to put matters right. Mr Singh was awarded a total of 16,615 in compensation: 5000 for the racial discrimination he suffered and 11,615 for unfair dismissal. So in one way promoting A. D. P is an individual act, it is important that if you see malpractice happening you should take steps to put an end to it. As a care worker you are instilled with a certain degree of power and it is important that this power is used in the correct way and not abused. A. D. P is an essential practice in the profession of social care and is imperative in ensuring equality for all service users, no matter what their indi vidual situation. Promoting it within the workplace is a duty that should be carried out by all individuals working there and is key to providing equality within the service for staff and service users. To do so staff should be well educated about the different types of discrimination and how easy it is to discriminate against someone. Also they should be alerted to types of discrimination language and how this although seemingly small can affect people.Mainly though you should ensure that you individually are not abusing your role and be vigilant of others who may be abusing theirs. Three values that underpin A. D. P are Privacy, Dignity and worth, and the right to choices. All service users should be given the right to privacy. Be given space to themselves when they need it, a little solitude and just time to be on their own. Every person needs and deserves privacy and it is essential that this right is adhered to. Every individual should also be given their dignity, respected and made to feel they as individuals are worth this respect, in turn giving them a more self-respect.This can be especially important in moving and handling or helping with bathing etc. Another important value in A. D. P is the right to choices. This recognises the individual's right to a choice concerning them or their welfare. Whether it be preferences in clothing or alternatives towards diet these choices should be respected. These values influence how we work in the care profession and when adhered to reduce the risk of discrimination in the workplace. Three examples of legislation which underpin A. D. P are: Sex discrimination act 1975 Disability discrimination act 1995 Race relation's act 1976 3.â€Å"The sex discrimination act 1975 states that: Direct and indirect discrimination on the basis of gender is illegal. † It applies to both male and female and makes it illegal to discriminate in employment, education and housing etc. on the grounds of gender. It aims to ensure t hat neither sex is discriminated against and is key to promoting equality between sexes. 4. â€Å"The disability discrimination act 1995 defines disability and encourages employers, transport providers and others to make reasonable efforts to respond to the needs of people with disabilities. This act takes into account the needs of the disabled and enforces society to respond to their needs whether it is access or care. 5. â€Å"Race relations act 1976 made direct and indirect discrimination on the basis of race illegal. The Commission for Racial Equality was set up to implement and monitor this act. † This act made it illegal to take a person's race into account when considering them for a job and made it illegal for people to be racially discriminated against in their workplace, promoting equality for the different races alongside ours, and helping to remove racial tension from the workplace.Each of these pieces of legislation affect how people work in the care profession, they must be taken into account and affect the service provided. They ensure to a certain degree that A. D. P is upheld and that all service users and staff are free from discrimination and ensured equality of service. However this is not always the case so it is important that with these things in mind each care worker is ever vigilant and always promoting A. D. P in the example of their own work.