Welcome to our latest Coffee Break in which we look at the latest legal and practical developments impacting UK employers.
When does an alleged belief in ethical veganism amount to a protected philosophical belief?
An Employment Tribunal has recently considered whether an alleged belief in ethical veganism was sufficient to amount to a protected belief under the Equality Act 2010, and therefore attract protection from discrimination. The claimant worked as bank staff in a care home and raised a grievance following a decision that all staff should be vaccinated against Covid-19.
The claimant followed a vegan diet and believed she was exempt from the vaccine, but also had concerns about the possible side-effects of the vaccine and its efficacy. The grievance was not upheld and the claimant was dismissed; she subsequently brought claims for unfair dismissal and religion or belief discrimination. On the latter, the Employment Tribunal found that the claimant's alleged belief in ethical veganism was not a protected belief under the Equality Act 2010 in these particular circumstances.
Does ethical veganism meet the criteria for a protected philosophical belief?
In determining whether a belief amounts to a philosophical belief the leading case remains Grainger plc & ors v Nicholson. It provides the now well-established guidance (subsequently replicated by the Equality and Human Rights Commission's code of practice) that a belief only qualifies for protection if it:
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