International Employment Lawyer
A UK employment tribunal has for the first time ruled that a belief in voodoo qualifies as a protected religious belief under the Equality Act.
“In many respects, this case isn’t surprising for a first-tier decision,” explains Dónall Breen. “The guiding principles laid down in the Grainger and Forstater cases confirm that many religious and philosophical beliefs will be protected by the Equality Act, provided they reach a certain legal standard.”
Following the Grainger and Forstater rulings, convictions that climate change exists, and that biological sex is immutable, are protected beliefs in the workplace.
“Employers and lawyers should not be surprised how wide the concept of protected belief can be,” says Breen. “Other beliefs which have previously been held by employment tribunals to be protected include a belief in democratic socialism, in participating in the democratic process, in ethical veganism, and that climate change is man made.”
Breen continues: “One interesting takeaway is that the claimant wasn’t a believer of voodooism. Although the claimant was not successful in this claim, it’s a useful reminder that you don’t need to be a member of a protected characteristic class to bring a harassment claim in respect of it.”
“It’s noteworthy that the tribunal spent considerable tracts of the judgment setting out it’s reasoning for why voodooism would be a protected belief,” Breen tells IEL. “Therefore, it’s not a ‘slam dunk’ that just because a set of beliefs may be described as a religion that it is automatically protected.”
