The BBC have been reporting that teachers in Wales will be given anti-racism training at work. This follows a recent trend of calling for anti-racism training to be made mandatory for employees at workplaces.
The risk of racism in the workplace to employers is obvious. Not only does it create a deeply unpleasant place to work and hampers efforts to broaden diversity within workforces, but there are also clear legal risks involved.
Where one employee discriminates against or harasses another employee because of that other employee’s race, colour or ethnicity, the employer can end up being legally liable for the harassment. That can mean having to defend a costly Employment Tribunal claim and all the negative publicity associated with that. Defending a full-blown Employment Tribunal all to the way to a final hearing can cost around £30,000 or more (unless your business has employee liability insurance) and the management time spent on such an exercise can also be huge.
There are however certain things an employer can do to try and reduce the legal risks of facing a discrimination claim in the Employment Tribunal. Legally, an employer may have a defence to a discrimination claim if it can show that it took all reasonable steps to stop the discrimination from happening in the first place. Some useful tips can be found here.
The obvious things an employer can do to show that it tried to stop the discrimination from happening are:
- Have a written policy on equality & diversity / anti-harassment & bullying. This policy should be included in a central staff handbook, which all staff should have access to.
- Make sure that these policies are updated regularly to reflect changes in the law and changes in the workplace. Annually is a good rule of thumb.
- Give staff training on how to treat others fairly at work. Proving that training has happened regularly can be a hugely useful legal defence to discrimination claims. Again, this should be done annually to refresh memories and make sure new starters are included.
- Explaining very clearly to staff how they can complain about racism and discrimination in the workplace. This could mean drawing attention to your equality & diversity policy or your separate grievance
If you need any help or advice on any of the above, please contact employment solicitor Rachel Ford-Evans on RFord-Evans@darwingray.com / 02920 829 120 for a free initial chat to see how we can help you.
