The Department of Human Affairs is one of the Departments within the Ministry of Community Affairs and Sport. The Department is comprised of four units as follows – i) Headquarters which is the administrative and management support unit of the Department, and three unique operational units – namely ii) Consumer Affairs, iii) the Commission for Unity and Racial Equality (CURE) and iv) the Human Rights Commission (HRC).
The operational units are unique as they are statutory bodies created by legislation, namely -
i) The Consumer Protection Act 1999;
ii) The Commission for Unity and Racial Equality Act 1994, CURE Amendment Act 1999, and the CURE Regulations 2000; and
iii) The Human Rights Act 1981 and amendments.
The operational units are quasi-governmental agencies / organizations (i.e. quangos) whose staff have Civil Service status, and constitute the operational and technical arms of the respective Boards / Commissions. The staff has a dual reporting relationship to the Director of Human Affairs within the Civil Service, as well as their respective Board or Commission.
Consumer Affairs has responsibility to ensure the rights of consumers to fair trade practices, product safety and redress by maintaining an international view point, a spirit of partnership through collaboration, information and where necessary, enforcement.
The Commission for Unity and Racial Equality is the designated body with responsibility for promoting equal opportunity and good relations between persons of different racial groups and to work towards the elimination of racial discrimination and institutional racial discrimination.
The Human Rights Commission is the designated body with responsibility for investigating genuine allegations of discrimination, increasing public awareness and knowledge of human rights, and encouraging Bermudians to embrace the principles of diversity and equality.