Can you call me ginger? Discrimination at work
11 December 2007
At present it is not unlawful to discriminate against someone because of their physical features. This includes a person's weight, size, shape or other bodily characteristics, including facial features, hair and birthmarks. There is also no direct right of action for employees to claim for harassment on grounds of hair colour or appearance. However, it is possible to pursue such a claim where the harassment can amount to discrimination on other unlawful grounds such as sex, race or disability and may constitute harassment more generally.
In the recent case of Primmer v Mayflower Kebabs Ltd, an employment tribunal held that taunts relating to the employees ginger hair comprised part of her claim for sex discrimination and unfair dismissal. This is because some of the remarks made about the employee’s hair colour included offensive sexual comments about her pubic hair. She was awarded £17,618 by the tribunal who sympathised with the effect of these comments on her self esteem.
The case is a warning to employers of the hidden dangers of harassment claims. It seems unlikely that in the UK it will become illegal to discriminate against red headed employees, or on grounds of appearance. However, employers need to be aware that existing legislation is wide enough to catch some types of this behaviour. For example, teasing someone about having grey hair could lead to a claim for Age Discrimination. Personal injury or disability claims could also arise if the bullying and harassment makes the victim psychologically or physically unwell. In order to not fall foul of the discrimination legislation, Employers should follow good practice in dealing with all types of harassment and bullying regardless of whether the apparent ground for the bullying is easily recognisable as unlawful discrimination.
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