Remembrance Day Discrimination?

Whether to permit employees to wear a red poppy in the workplace as a symbol of remembrance is not without controversy. Some employers seek to ban the wearing of the poppy on grounds of health and safety (for example in food preparation areas). For others the poppy is seen as a political symbol that may cause offence to others.

Are employers entitled to ban the wearing of the poppy, or will that possibly amount to discrimination on grounds of religion or belief?

The question of whether the wearing of the poppy could amount to a 'belief' under the Equality Act was considered by an Employment Tribunal in the case of Lisk v Shield Guardian Co Ltd. In this case Mr Lisk was an ex-serviceman who alleged that his employer refused to allow him to wear a poppy at work. He brought a discrimination claim against his employer. Mr Lisk's argument was that: -

He regarded the period from 2 November to 11 November as a period of mourning, and he equated it to the seriousness with which he, a Christian, observed Lent; As an ex-serviceman, he considered it an obligation to show respect for the sacrifice of others; and In his opinion the wearing of the poppy was widespread in this country and abroad, and did not conflict with anybody else's rights. At a preliminary hearing, the employment judge considered whether his purported belief that "we should pay our respects to those who have given their lives for us by wearing a poppy from All Souls' Day on 2 November to Remembrance Day" amounted to a philosophical belief protected by the Equality Act 2010.

The test applied by the Judge was that set out in a previous case, Grainger plc and others v Nicholson [2010] IRLR 4. In that case the EAT gave guidance as to what amounts to a philosophical belief for the purposes of the discrimination legislation. It stated that the belief must:

Be genuinely held. Be a belief, not an opinion or viewpoint based on the present state of information available. Be a belief as to a weighty and substantial aspect of human life and behaviour. Attain a certain level of cogency, seriousness, cohesion and importance. Be worthy of respect in a...