Positive discrimination measures

Danish Institute for Human Rights has been tasked with promoting the equal treatment of all citizens, irrespective of race or ethnic origin. The aim of this report is to bring about a greater insight into how Danish workplaces utilize, and have the potential to utilize, positive discrimination and other active measures as tools to promote equal opportunities for ethnic minorities on the Danish labour market.

We hope to be able to contribute to helping authorities and public and private workplaces to become more aware of the advantages of utilizing active measures, and thereby help more people of ethnic minorities into a job.

Figures produced by Statistics Denmark indicate that ethnic minorities are attached to the labour market to a far lesser extent than the remainder of the population.

The recommendations of the Danish Institute for Human Rights

There is a need to promote equal opportunities for ethnic minorities on the Danish labour market; both by means of new legislation and by increased transparency regarding existing regulations. We therefore recommend:

Removing obstacles to active initiatives on the part of employers

• The Ministry of Employment should update its guidelines on the Danish Act on Prohibition against Discrimination on the Labour Market, and by means of specific examples clarify under what circumstances and how workplaces can, voluntarily and pursuant to existing regulations, implement active measures to promote equal opportunities for ethnic minorities on the labour market. This should include clarifying the measures it is legal and feasible to implement pursuant to sections 9(2) and 9(3) of the Danish Act on Prohibition against Discrimination on the Labour Market, with no exemptions.
• The Ministry of Employment should provide publicly accessible information concerning existing measures pursuant to section 9(2) of the Danish Act on Prohibition against Discrimination on the Labour Market and the individual exemptions granted pursuant to section 6(2) of the Act.
• Public and private employers should be granted the same possibilities for promoting employment opportunities for ethnic minorities as they currently have for promoting the job prospects of older employees and disabled persons. The Danish Institute for Human Rights therefore recommends that ‘ethnic minorities’ is inserted into section 9(3) of the Danish Act on Prohibition against Discrimination on the Labour Market alongside older employees and disabled persons.

Public sector employers have a particular responsibility

• All public sector employers should make use of target figures and policies which promote genuine equality of treatment for ethnic minorities, and the impact of the policies implemented should be followed up on an ongoing basis.

Reporting by private sector employers on activities aimed at promoting equal treatment of ethnic minorities

• Section 99a of the Danish Financial Statements Act should be amended such that, pursuant to their existing obligation to report on matters of corporate social responsibility, the approximately 1200 largest businesses in Denmark are explicitly instructed to report on their activities aimed at promoting equal treatment of ethnic minorities

Please note that the report is only available in Danish - but contains an English summary on page 8-9.