UNDERSTANDING DISCRIMINATION: A GLOSSARY OF TERMS
The European Union has built its anti-discrimination framework on Article 19 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).
This provision empowers the EU to take action to combat discrimination based on sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age, or sexual orientation. On this legal basis, the EU adopted key equality directives that prohibit discrimination in employment, vocational training, and access to goods and services.
Importantly, these grounds are not merely categories of protection; they reflect recurring social dynamics that produce exclusion.
Within this legal and social context, the Erasmus+ project Diversity Inc. addresses a critical gap in the European labour market. Micro and Small Entities (MSEs) represent 99% of EU businesses and employ around two-thirds of the workforce. Despite their central economic role, these organisations often lack the time, expertise, and resources to develop structured diversity and inclusion policies, leaving workers more exposed to discrimination.
Diversity Inc. works to support MSEs in becoming safe, inclusive, and respectful workplaces. The project targets three key groups. First, it supports staff and management of micro and small enterprises, as well as small non-profit associations, by providing practical tools to recognise and prevent discrimination. Second, it engages VET providers, re-skilling institutions, and business associations, equipping them to train “Area Ambassadors” who can promote inclusive practices at local level. Third, it directly addresses individuals who are more likely to experience discrimination in the workplace, including those protected under EU law on the grounds of sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age, or sexual orientation, as well as people affected by intersectional discrimination.
A key outcome of the Diversity Inc. project is the development of a comprehensive glossary of terms. This glossary covers legally protected discrimination characteristics, alongside additional concepts that help explain how discrimination operates in everyday work environments. Having a shared language is essential: understanding what discrimination looks like is the first step toward preventing it. By providing a clear and accessible reference tool, Diversity Inc. helps organisations build awareness, avoid harmful practices, and foster workplaces that are not only more inclusive, but also more productive and resilient.
For each ground of discrimination we will now focus on a term that is part of the glossary.
SEX
Gender-binary - System that classifies gender into only two categories—man and woman. In contrast, the gender spectrum recognizes that gender is diverse and exists across a wide range of identities, expressions, and experiences, rather than being limited to just two fixed categories.
RACIAL OR ETHNIC ORIGIN
Assimilationist - An assimilationist is an individual, group or institution that supports the absorption of a minority or marginalised group into the dominant culture by encouraging — explicitly or implicitly — the abandonment of the minority group’s cultural practices, identities or values in favour of those of the dominant group.
RELIGION OR BELIEF
Bigotry: Intolerant prejudice that glorifies one’s own group and denigrates members of other groups.
DISABILITY
Ableism - A value system that regards certain typical characteristics of the body and mind as essential for leading a life of value. Based on strict standards of appearance, functioning and behaviour, ableist attitudes view the experience of disability as a misfortune (failing to meet the standards) that causes suffering and disadvantage and invariably devalues human life.
Ableism can also refer to the structural, institutional and interpersonal forms of discrimination that stem from ableist norms. It encompasses the practices, policies and social arrangements of exclusion that systematically disadvantage people with disabilities, not because of their impairments, but because society is organised around assumptions of physical normality and normative cognitive functioning.
AGE
Ageism - A form of systemic bias whereby individuals or groups are categorized, stereotyped, or discriminated against on the basis of their age, whether young or old. Ageism manifests through social, institutional, and cultural mechanisms that produce disadvantage, limited opportunities, and perpetuate inequality, while simultaneously eroding solidarity and cohesion across generations.
SEXUAL ORIENTATION
Heteronormativity - Refers to the dominant cultural system that positions heterosexuality and cisgender identity as the normative modes of sex, gender, and relationship. It assumes an alignment between biological sex, gender identity, gender expression and it regulates social life through expectations grounded in the gender binary. Consequently, non-heterosexual and gender-diverse identities are rendered deviant, marginal, or invisible within this framework.
You can find all the other terms related to discrimination in the glossary on the project website.