AI profiling, social media checks and sexual orientation at work in Great Britain

Most workplace AI tools never ask about sexual orientation. Some can still touch it: social media and background checks that pick up posts or affiliations, profiling tools that infer personal traits from online activity, chat and monitoring tools that flag messages, and HR systems that apply rules about partners and benefits. This page sets out what the Equality Act 2010 says and where these tools come in.

The short answer: sexual orientation means a person's sexual orientation towards persons of the same sex, the opposite sex or either sex (s12(1)). An employer must not treat someone less favourably because of sexual orientation (s13(1)), must be able to justify a rule applied to everyone that puts people of a sexual orientation at a particular disadvantage (s19), and must not harass someone in a way related to it (s26).

What the characteristic covers

• The definition: orientation towards persons of the same sex, the opposite sex or either sex (s12(1)).
• Sharing the characteristic: people share it if they are of the same sexual orientation (s12(2)).

The tests

• Direct (section 13): less favourable treatment because of sexual orientation cannot be justified (s13(1)-(2)). See direct discrimination.
• Indirect (section 19): sexual orientation is one of the characteristics covered (s19(3)). See indirect discrimination.
• Harassment (section 26): unwanted conduct related to sexual orientation that has the purpose or effect of violating a person's dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for them (s26(1); s26(5)). See harassment related to a protected characteristic.
• Married and civil partners: where the characteristic is sexual orientation, the fact that one person is a civil partner while another is married is not a material difference in the comparison, and nor is being married to, or the civil partner of, someone of the same sex rather than the opposite sex (s23(3)-(4)).

Where AI tools come in

• Social media and background checks: a tool that flags posts, groups or events can surface a person's sexual orientation to a recruiter. Once the employer knows, any less favourable treatment because of it falls under section 13.
• Inferred profiles: tools that infer personality or "culture fit" from online activity may draw on signals linked to sexual orientation. Ask the vendor what data is used and turn off any feature that infers personal characteristics.
• Marital status fields: screening on marital status itself is covered on marriage and civil partnership at work.
• Benefit and partner rules in HR systems: a rule coded into a benefits or leave system that treats same-sex partners, or civil partners compared with spouses, differently can raise the comparison in section 23(3)-(4).
• Monitoring and moderation: chat and email tools that flag words linked to sexual orientation as inappropriate can lead to warnings or reviews; where that treatment is because of sexual orientation, or the flagging itself creates a hostile environment, the rules above apply.

The employer is responsible for what it does with a vendor's tool. For checks that also pick up religion or belief, see religion or belief at work.

Practical steps

• Employers: limit social media checks to what the job needs, keep information about personal characteristics away from decision makers, check that HR system rules treat spouses and civil partners and same-sex and opposite-sex partners alike, and review moderation word lists.
• Candidates and workers: ask what checks were run and on what sources, keep copies of any flags or warnings, and note who saw the results.

For time limits and proof, see time limits and the burden of proof; for the Act's other workplace rules, AI and the Equality Act 2010.

This page covers Great Britain and is general information on the law as at 2 November 2026, not legal advice.