The Gender Equality Law, 2011 makes certain actions criminal offences to ensure the goal of promoting gender equality is not undermined and that persons are protected from discrimination and other harms.
It is an offence to bribe a person to discriminate against another person. It is also an offence to victimise or threaten someone who proposes to make a complaint, provided information or documents, proposes to provide evidence or testimony as a witness or has made a good faith allegation that a person has committed an act of discrimination under this Law.
A person who is an employer commits an offence if that person knowingly, or recklessly, makes a false or misleading statement to an employment agency regarding the lawfulness of refusing to offer a person employment on the grounds of sex, gender, marital status or pregnancy.
When a complaint is before the Gender Equality Tribunal, a person commits an offence if he or she
- fails without reasonable excuse to comply with a requirement to produce information or appear as a witness;
- destroys or alters, or causes to be destroyed or altered, any information required to be produced; or
- hinders, obstructs, prevents or interferes with the Tribunal in the exercise of its powers.
After a complaint has been resolved and the Gender Equality Tribunal has made a decision, a complainant or respondent commits an offence if he or she fails to comply with any order given by the Tribunal.
If a current or past member of the Gender Equality Tribunal breaches confidentiality provisions he or she commits an offence.
Penalties
A person who commits any of these offences under the Gender Equality Law is liable on summary conviction to a fine of CI$5,000.
While an employer may not always be liable for any act done by an employee that is deemed to be discriminatory, if an employee commits an offence in the course of his or her employment the employer will also automatically be liable.
