4. Glossary of terms

The consequences, whether intended or not, of employment practices that disproportionately affect certain groups more than others.

Example: A promotion criterion based on seniority that ignores potential career interruptions (e.g. due to care responsibilities) might disproportionately disadvantage those groups more likely to have interrupted careers (for example, women)

A group that holds less power, representation, or influence within society, organizations, or institutions—often due to historical, social, or structural inequities. This can refer to demographic characteristics such as race, ethnicity, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability status, or other socially marginalized identities.

Intolerant prejudice that glorifies one’s own group and denigrates members of other groups.

Refers to a tacit, indirect or embedded preference or inclination, sometimes unconscious, that is developed through beliefs, values, culture, background, education, societal norms, stereotypes or personal experiences.

The process that occurs when members of a dominant group relegate a particular group to the edge of society by not allowing them an active voice, identity, or place for the purpose of maintaining power. 

A situation where several discrimination grounds operate and interact with each other at the same time in such a way that they are inseparable and thereby expose relevant individuals to unique types of disadvantage and discrimination.

Example: A young migrant woman with a disability is denied a promotion. The disadvantage she experiences cannot be explained solely by her gender, age, migrant status or disability; rather, these factors combine to create a unique form of discrimination that would not be captured by looking at any single ground in isolation

A subtle, often unconscious verbal or non-verbal comment or action that conveys a prejudiced or dismissive attitude towards an individual or group. Microaggressions can occur in everyday interactions and may be framed as humour or casual remarks, yet still reinforce stereotypes or exclusion.

The process by which an attribute, condition or circumstance possessed by a person or group, is regarded as undesirable or discrediting. The term “stigma” may also be used.

The systematic subjugation of one social group by a more powerful social group for the social, economic, and political benefit of the more powerful social group. (more political than social/result of mariganlisation)

A systemic pattern in which a dominant social group restricts the rights, opportunities, resources and dignity of another group through interlocking social, cultural and institutional mechanisms.

Oppression operates at structural, interpersonal and internalised levels, producing social, economic and political advantages for the dominant group while reinforcing the marginalization of the subordinated group.

The practice of making superficial or purely symbolic efforts to demonstrate diversity or inclusion, typically by involving a small number of individuals from underrepresented groups without granting them genuine influence, authority or structural support.

Tokenism often ignores intersectional identities and may place disproportionate visibility, pressure or representational expectations on a single person who is perceived as standing in for an entire group.

The institutionalization of discrimination through policies and practices that may appear neutral on the surface, but which have an exclusionary impact on particular groups. 

A social system in which men hold the greatest power, leadership roles, privilege, moral authority and access to resources and land, including in the family. According to this kind of social system, men, or what is considered masculine, are accorded more importance than women, or what is considered feminine.

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.

Ableism: A value system that considers certain typical characteristics of body and mind to be essential to living a life of value. Based on strict standards of appearance, functioning and behaviour, ableist ways of thinking consider the experience of disability as a misfortune (not on the standards) that leads to suffering and disadvantage and invariably devalues human life.

Disableism: Refers to the structural, institutional and interpersonal forms of discrimination that arise from ableist norms. It encompasses the exclusionary practices, policies and social arrangements that systematically disadvantage disabled people, not because of their impairments, but because society is organized around assumptions of able-bodiedness and normative cognitive functioning

Persons with disabilities include those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.

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.

Persons with disabilities include those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.

The process that ensures that all individuals have the opportunity to participate fully and equally in all aspects of social, economic, cultural and civic life, by removing barriers, ensuring accessibility and promoting equal rights, dignity and inclusion. 

The process or condition in which individuals or groups are systematically denied full participation in social, economic, cultural, or political life. It occurs when structural barriers, discriminatory practices, or social norms prevent access to opportunities, resources, or decision-making, resulting in marginalization, disadvantage, or isolation.

Policies, procedures and practices within institutions that systematically produce unequal outcomes or disadvantages for people based on race, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin. This form of racism is embedded in organizational structures and does not require intentional prejudice by individuals to have an effect.

Attitudes, prejudices and behaviours that reject, exclude and often vilify persons, based on the perception that they are outsiders or foreigners to the community, society or national identity. 

Occurs when individuals from racially or ethnically marginalized groups consciously or unconsciously adopt the beliefs, stereotypes, or values of a dominant racial group, including ideas of superiority and inferiority. This may lead to self-doubt, devaluation of one’s own group, or participation in behaviours and structures that reinforce racial inequality.

Fear, hatred, scorn, disparagement and/or devaluing of women and/or the feminine.

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. 

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. 

Refers to institutionally supported advantages available to members of dominant social groups, advantages that are not earned through effort but arise from the unequal distribution of power in society.