In 2013, the Equality Board ruled that it was gender discriminatory for the hair salon to set different prices for men's haircuts and women's haircuts. The Eastern High Court has now overturned the Equality Board's decision.
The case began when a young woman with short hair filed a complaint with the Equality Board about having to pay more for a haircut than men. The Equality Board found in her favor that this was gender discrimination. Since then, the Equality Board has made a number of similar decisions.
The hair salons subsequently brought the case before the Eastern High Court, which in a judgment from 10 November 2014 ruled in favour of the hairdressers that they may have different prices for men's haircuts and women's haircuts respectively. The Eastern High Court justifies the decision by saying that men's haircuts and women's haircuts are two different services, where women's haircuts, among other things, take longer than men's haircuts, and that the difference justifies that there is also a difference in price. It is therefore not in itself enough to speak of discrimination that there is a price difference.
The fact that one service is called a men's haircut and the other a women's haircut is not in itself discriminatory. Women can easily go into a hair salon and ask for a men's haircut. However, depending on the circumstances, it may be discriminatory if the hairdresser refuses to give a woman a men's haircut, just as it may be discriminatory if a man can get a technically complicated haircut at a lower price, even if the haircut is otherwise equivalent in difficulty and time required to a women's haircut.
The High Court also notes that these are only indicative prices. It is therefore part of the argument that it is possible to negotiate the price of a haircut, so that women can negotiate a price equivalent to a men's haircut.
The Equality Board's decision sparked a major debate within the hairdressing profession about how to deal with the decision. With the ruling from the Eastern High Court, hairdressers can once again relax and continue the practice that has been used so far. However, the most important thing is always whether the price difference is due to real differences in the product you buy, or whether the difference can only be attributed to the fact that it is men or women who buy the product or service in question. In the latter case, there is a high probability that there will be illegal discrimination.
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