Politics and Beliefs Protected under Equality Act 2010

Philosophical beliefs can include political beliefs, veganism and even a belief public money is being wasted. The test for a philosophical belief was defined in the case of Granger as follows:

• The belief must be genuinely held.
• The belief must not simply be an opinion or viewpoint based on the present state of information available.
• The belief must concern a weighty and substantial aspect of human life and behaviour.
• The belief must attain a certain level of cogency, seriousness, cohesion, and importance.
• The belief must be worthy of respect in a democratic society, not be incompatible with human dignity and not be in conflict with the fundamental rights of others.

Most beliefs that are genuinely held, are more than an opinion and cover substantial matter. Some beliefs, such as Neo-Nazism, are not worthy of a respect in a democratic society and therefore are not a protected characteristic. However, most beliefs that do not satisfy the Granger test, do so due to them not being cogent enough. For example, vegetarianism was found not be a protected belief.

This Week’s Question

Can a belief in a participatory democracy be a protected belief under Section 10 of the Equality Act 2010?

Ms Jones, the Claimant, was employed by The Scottish Federation of Housing Associations, the Respondent, as Head of Membership and Policy. The Claimant’s terms and conditions included a political activity clause which prevented her having a formal role in a political organisation. However, she could still be a member.

The Claimant was a member of the Scottish Labour Party and sought to become a Labour MP in the 2019 General Election. The Respondent told the Claimant they did not support her application and she withdrew it. Shortly after the Claimant was dismissed from employment. The Respondent did not list the Claimant’s proposed MP candidacy as a reason for dismissal.

The Claimant believed her proposed candidacy was the real reason for her dismissal and commenced several Employment Tribunal claims. The Claimant accepted that her membership of Scottish Labour and her left-leaning political beliefs were not the reason for dismissal. Instead she sought to argue that her belief in a participatory democracy was the reason for her dismissal.

At a preliminary hearing, the Employment Tribunal held that the Claimant’s political beliefs and membership related to her dismissal as someone without those beliefs would not have sought to become a candidate and therefore would not have been dismissed. It also found that a belief in a participatory democracy was a protected belief.

The Respondent appealed and the Employment Appeal Tribunal allowed the appeal in part. Given the Claimant had accepted her membership of Scottish Labour and political beliefs where not the cause of her dismissal the ET had erred in finding that the dismissal was related to her beliefs. Instead it was due to her breach of the political activity clause in her contract.

However, the EAT also held that the Claimant had a genuine belief in participatory democracy, that this belief covered a substantial aspect of human life and was of a sufficient level of cogency worthy of respect in democratic society. The Claimant may not have been dismissed due to her Labour beliefs but her wish to engage in democracy as a political candidate was possibly a factor. The case was remitted back to ET for a full hearing to determine the fairness of her dismissal.

The Takeaway Point

A belief in a participatory democracy is a protected belief. This was always likely given that we live in a democratic society but it will be interesting to see whether the final hearing finds that a belief in a participatory democracy essentially voids a political activity clause in a contract of employment. This may result in some contracts needing to be reworded.