In a Direct Discrimination Claim, What is a Comparator and When is it Required?
Published on: 06/06/2023
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Article Authors The main content of this article was provided by the following authors.
Chris Fullerton Partner in the Employment Law Group, Arthur Cox LLP
Chris Fullerton Partner in the Employment Law Group, Arthur Cox LLP
Chris fullerton from arthur cox ni
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>Chris is a partner in the Employment Law Group of the Arthur Cox Belfast Office in Northern Ireland.

Chris has extensive experience dealing with both contentious and non-contentious employment law matters. Chris advises a range of employers on all aspects of employment law including executive appointments, severance, grievances, disciplinary issues and trade union matters. Chris has represented clients before the Industrial Tribunal, Fair Employment Tribunal and the Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland in employment litigation such as unfair dismissal, equality/discrimination and whistleblowing. Chris’ practice area includes advisory work and corporate transactions.

In a Direct Discrimination Claim, What is a Comparator and When is it Required?

If an employee claims that their employer discriminated directly against them, it must be proven that the treatment was less favourable than the treatment which would be afforded to others due to the employee’s protected characteristic. In order for the tribunal to approach this, a comparator must be utilised.

A comparator is a tool used by the tribunal to compare treatment of the claimant to someone who should be in the same or not materially different circumstances but who does not have the protected characteristic of the claimant. The purpose of employing a comparator is to enable the claimant to show that the reason for their

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Disclaimer The information in this article is provided as part of Legal Island's Employment Law Hub. We regret we are not able to respond to requests for specific legal or HR queries and recommend that professional advice is obtained before relying on information supplied anywhere within this article. This article is correct at 06/06/2023