Maintaining ‘office harmony’ a valid factor in recruitment decisions, employment tribunal in London rules
There are times when disagreements about football in the workplace cross the line from fun banter to downright rudeness or abuse.
An employment judge has now ruled that people can legally be turned down for a job if they happen to support the rival team followed by existing staff.
Employers are entitled to base recruitment decisions on whether a prospective colleague might “damage office harmony”, by not supporting the same team, employment judge Daniel Wright said.
He ruled that a boss would not be breaking employment law, for example, if they rejected a job application from an avid Tottenham Hotspur supporter because the office was full of Arsenal fans.
The comments came in the case of a woman who took legal action after she lost out on a job with a marketing agency because she didn’t “vibe” with her interviewer.
Maia Kalina claimed that she was discriminated against because she was not outgoing and did not enjoy going to the pub.
Wright dismissed her claims, saying employers had the right to consider whether a prospective employee would get on well with existing staff.
He said: “There may be times when it is perfectly lawful for an employer to decide that somebody just will not be a fit with the team and that therefore it would be difficult to work together.
“An example of this could be a small company where everybody who works in the office is an ardent supporter...
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