The Equality Act 2010
Under s.10 of the Equality Act 2010 (the Act), “religious or philosophical belief “are protected characteristics and thus an employee cannot be treated unfairly in holding such believes otherwise the employee would have the following potential claims:
Harassment
Victimisation
Political Ideology
The Act does not protect employees from discrimination based on political opinion, however employees may seek protection for their political ideology through their “philosophical belief” by satisfying the test laid down in Grainger plc & others v Nicholson namely:
Genuinely held
A belief and not an opinion or viewpoint based on the present state of information available
A belief as to a weight and substantial aspect of human life and behaviour
The belief must have a certain level of cogency, seriousness, coherency, and importance
The belief must be worthy of respect in a democratic society, not be incompatible with human dignity, and not conflict with the fundamental rights of others.
The recent case of McEleny v MOD 2019, gives further credence to political ideology argument where the Employment Tribunal found that a belief in Scottish independence amounted to a “philosophical belief “under the Equality Act 2010 thereby, affording protection from discrimination relating to that belief in circumstances where the individual’s personal views were central to the Tribunal’s findings.
It seems unlikely that membership of extreme political parties would be protected because of the requirement that a “ philosophical belief “must not be incompatible with human dignity and not conflict with the fundamental rights of others but with Brexit, employees who may hold strong and passionate opinions on whether the UK should be in or out of Europe could now potentially seek redress in the Employment Tribunal if they believe they have been treated unfavourably at work as a result of those opinions.
Above case illustrates how the meaning of “philosophical belief” can be far reaching but recently another Employment Tribunal decided on the facts that vegetarianism was not a” philosophical belief “capable of protection under the Equality Act as it was a “lifestyle choice” but hinted that veganism may be protected - Mr G Conisbee v Crossley Farms Ltd & Ors 2019 however, where vegetarian is linked to a “religious belief” then it is more than likely to be protected.
Although employment tribunal decisions are not binding on subsequent cases, these cases provide useful examples of how tribunals could approach legal issues based upon the facts before them.
If this article raises any issues for you or your organisation, please speak to our Quest HR Advisors by contacting us on 0333 240 7208.
