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Question: |
Is it unlawful to discriminate against
someone on the grounds of their philosophical or ethical belief (say belief
in green issues) |
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Answer: |
This question boils down to whether vegetarianism (or
other philosophical beliefs) amounts to a belief protected by the Employment
Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003 (which will be incorporated
into the Equality Act 2010 from the 1st October 2010). The government’s explanatory notes published when the
regulations came out, say that regulation 2(1) defines “religion or belief”
as “any religion, religious belief, or similar philosophical belief” and
rather unhelpfully goes on to say this will be a question for the courts and
tribunals to determine. However: ‘The reference to “religion” is a
broad one, and is in line with the freedom of religion guaranteed by Article
9 ECHR. It includes those religions widely recognised in this country such as
Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Rastafarianism,
Baha’is, Zoroastrians and Jains. Equally, branches or sects within a religion
can be considered as a religion or religious belief, such as Catholics or
Protestants within the Christian church, for example. The European Court of
Human Rights has recognised other collective religions including Druidism,
the To be a “religion” for the purposes of Article 9 of the
European Charter of Human Rights, it must have a clear structure and
belief system. Even if a belief
does not constitute a religion for these purposes, it may constitute a
“similar philosophical belief” (see below). ‘The reference to “religious
belief” is also a broad one, in line with Article 9 ECHR. It may go further
than simply a belief about adherence to a religion or its central articles of
faith. It may include other beliefs founded in a religion, if they attain a
certain level of cogency, seriousness, cohesion and importance, provided the
beliefs are worthy of respect in a democratic society and are not
incompatible with human dignity (see judgment of the European Court of Human
Rights in Campbell and Cosans v UK (1982) 4 EHRR 293 at 304).‘ Getting to the question of other philosophical beliefs,
the government notes go on to say that ‘the reference to “similar philosophical
belief” does not include any philosophical or political belief unless it
is similar to a religious belief. ....’ ‘a belief must include faith in a
God/Gods or worship of a God/Gods to be “similar” to a religious belief. It
means that the belief in question should be a profound belief affecting a
person’s way of life, or perception of the world. Effectively, the belief
should occupy a place in the person’s life parallel to that filled by the
God/Gods of those holding a particular religious belief. As with a religious
belief, a similar philosophical belief must attain a certain level of
cogency, seriousness, cohesion and importance, be worthy of respect in a
democratic society, and not incompatible with human dignity (see judgment of
the European Court of Human Rights in Again what may or may not amount to a philosophical belief
will be up to the courts and tribunals to determine. However it seems likely
that a ‘similar philosophical belief’ may well amount to a belief that, like
religion, has a profound effect on the life of the person who holds the
belief, and, again, must be a belief that is worthy of respect in a
democratic society and not incompatible with human dignity. In other words, vegetarianism arising from
religious belief may well be covered. Vegetarianism because someone thinks
that meat does not taste nice is pretty unlikely to be covered. Vegetarianism
as part of a serious, cogent ethical belief system could be. In Grainger plc and ors v Nicholson,
November 2009, the EAT has held that a belief that carbon emissions must be
cut to avoid catastrophic climate change is capable of amounting to a
philosophical belief for the purposes of the Employment Equality (Religion or
Belief) Regulations 2003. In reaching this decision, the EAT also held that,
unlike the position pertaining to religious beliefs, Mr Nicholson would
probably need to be cross-examined on his belief in order to establish it. The belief must be genuinely held. It must be
a belief and not an opinion or viewpoint based on information currently
available. It must be a belief as to a weighty and substantial aspect of
human life and behaviour. It must attain a certain level of cogency,
seriousness, cohesion and importance. It must be worthy of respect in a democratic
society, not be incompatible with human dignity and not conflict with the
fundamental rights of others. See also our page on the Equality Act Last reviewed: July 2010. |
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Employment
Solicitor Reculver Solicitors Tel
0207 324 6271 Regulated
by the Solicitors Regulation Authority ©
Reculver Solicitors. 2005- |
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