Only applicants recorded as female at birth or with gender recognition certificates should be considered for jobs that require women, the equality watchdog has said.
Guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), published on Tuesday, was welcomed by women’s rights campaigners for clarifying employment law surrounding gender.
The EHRC said there had been a “lack of clarity about the law” when a job requirement related to sex, such as when employing a female carer.
The commission has updated guidance for employers advertising for staff “to help them ensure such adverts are lawful and do not discriminate”. It noted evidence that some employers “have incorrectly applied occupational requirement exceptions”, adding that there “appears to be a particular lack of clarity about the law where