DQ Advocates is hosting an equality conference at the Villa Marina next month.

DQ has brought together experts in the field of employment law to speak on a variety of topics to ensure Isle of Man businesses are best placed to fully understand their obligations as the Equality Act 2017 (the Act) is phased in.

Following the announcement of Royal Assent last July, the majority of the provisions of the Act are expected to come into operation by January 2020.

It is becoming clear ’Equality’ is likely to be a big buzz word for employment law in the Isle of Man over the next few years and this conference is said to be a golden opportunity for island businesses and their HR professionals to hear experts within the employment law field discuss many of the new issues they will need to deal with.

Leanne McKeown is a director at DQ and heads up the employment team.

Leanne has long understood businesses in the island need to be provided with informative, pragmatic advice and to this end, she and her team decided to organise this conference.

Gathering together will be prominent employment barristers and professionals to speak on a number of issues:

Sex Discrimination

Jane Mulcahy QC from Blackstone Chambers in London will speak on ’Sex Discrimination, #MeToo and the Underlying Law’. J

Jane is an employment law specialist and is recognised as a leading silk in the latest editions of both of the leading legal directories.

Disability

Discrimination

Nick Siddall from Littleton Chambers in London will discuss ’Disability Discrimination and Reasonable Adjustments’ - an issue that has been visited many times in the Employment Tribunals in England and Wales.

Nick’s practice takes in all facets of employment litigation in the High Court and statutory tribunal in England and Nick is also a frequent visitor to the Isle of Man, appearing before the Employment Tribunal here on a number of occasions.

Race Discrimination

Paras Gorasia from King’s Chambers in Manchester will cover ’Race: Banter vs Discrimination and Everything in Between.

Paras is a leading senior junior barrister, with more than 10 years’ experience advising and representing parties before the Employment Tribunal and Civil Courts in England and Wales.

Discrimination owing to Religious Belief or Sexual Orientation

James Boyd, also of King’s Chambers, will be presenting to delegates on ’Discrimination because of Religion or Belief and Sexual Orientation Discrimination’.

James is an experienced litigator of over 20 years and is head of the employment team at King’s Chambers.

James undertakes work for both employers and employees.

He tends to be instructed in multi-day cases around the whole of the UK (including Scotland and Northern Ireland).

Burden of Proof

David Reade QC from Littleton Chambers will speak about Burden of Proof under the Act.

David is recognised as one of the UK’s leading silks in both employment law and commercial litigation. He has appeared in many leading authorities and is well regarded by clients and peers alike.

Leanne said: ’The Act is a ground breaking piece of legislation for the Isle of Man and it brings with it new opportunities and challenges for employers.

’The concepts of disability discrimination and age discrimination for example are indicative of the evolution of employment law and employers need to be ready when these and the other new provisions are fully in operation.

’The whole employment team at DQ have been working hard to put together this equality conference.

’We hope that island employers will take this opportunity to hear from some of the most well respected names in the employment and HR world both on and off island in order to better understand their rights and obligations moving forward.’

In addition to the above, speakers will include:

Barry Philips, Legal-Island - The Business Case for Diversity and Tackling Unconscious Bias

Steve Billinghurst, PwC Isle of Man - Equal Pay for Equal Work - What we can take from the UK

Leanne McKeown, DQ - Age Discrimination and its Impact on Isle of Man Employers

Tara Cubbon and Jessica McManus, DQ - Day in the Life of HR - Equality Law in Action

The conference is aimed at Isle of Man businesses and HR professionals who wish to learn about the new obligations that they will face under the Act.

It is a ’must attend’ event for anyone employing staff and/or dealing with employment law issues who will have the opportunity to hear from experts in this field.

The event is on Tuesday, March 13. Further information on the conference: www.dq.im

Leanne McKeown

Logo for the conference on Tuesday, March 13

Jessica McManus

Tara Cubbon