ACT No. IV of 2009 An Act to amend the Equality for Men and Women Act, Cap.

(L.S.) E dward F enech A dami

ACT No. IV of 2009

An Act to amend the Equality for Men and Women Act, Cap.

456. BE IT ENACTED by the President, by and with the advice and

consent of the House of Representatives, in this present Parliament

assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:-

The short title of this Act is the Equality for Men and Women

(Amendment) Act, 2009 and this Act shall be read and construed as

one with the Equality for Men and Women Act, hereinafter referred

to as “the principal Act”.

Article 2 of the principal Act shall be amended as

follows

(a) in the definition of “discrimination” in subarticle (1)

thereof, for the words “has been or would be treated” there shall

be substituted the words “is, has been or would be treated”.

(b) paragraph (d) of subarticle (3) thereof shall be

deleted and substituted by the following

“(d) any treatment based on a provision, criterion

or practice which would put persons of one sex at a

particular disadvantage compared with persons of the

other sex unless that provision, criterion or practice is

appropriate and necessary and can be justified by objective

factors unrelated to sex.”; and

(c) immediately after subarticle (4) thereof there shall

be inserted the following new subarticle

“(4A) Indirect discrimination may be proved by

any means of evidence including statistical evidence.”.

Subarticle (1) of article 12 of the principal Act shall be

amended as follows

(a) in paragraph (g) thereof, for the words “to carry out

general investigations” there shall be substituted the words “to

carry out general and independent investigations”;

(b) in paragraph (h) thereof, for the words “to investigate”

there shall be substituted the words “to independently

investigate”;

(c) in paragraph (i) of article 12 of the principal Act,

after the words “make determinations” there shall be inserted

the words “in an independent manner”; and

(d) in paragraph (j) thereof, for the words “provide

assistance” there shall be substituted the words “provide

independent assistance”.

Passed by the House of Representatives at Sitting No. 98 of 1st April, 2009.

L ouis G alea

Speaker

P auline A bela

Clerk to the House of Representatives