Nicholson v Grainger Plc

27 May 2009

Nicholson v Grainger Plc

By Corinne Day

The employment tribunal held that an individual's beliefs about climate change were capable of being a 'belief' for the purposes of the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003.

The Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003 (the Religion or Belief Regulations) came into force on 2 December 2003 and implement the religious discrimination aspects of the Equal Treatment Framework Directive 2000/78/EC. They prohibit direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, discrimination by way of victimisation or harassment in the workplace by reason of any religion or belief. The term 'belief' is defined as 'any religious or philosophical belief' (regulation 2(1), Religion or Belief Regulations).

Mr Nicolson, who was employed by Grainger Plc, and who was subsequently made redundant, claimed that Grainger Plc had discriminated against him on the basis that he had a strongly held philosophical belief about climate change and the environment.

The employment tribunal held that Mr Nicholson's beliefs about climate change and the environment were capable of being a belief for the purposes of the Religion or Belief Regulations.

Mr Nicholson argued that his beliefs relating to climate change and the need to cut carbon emissions were:

"not merely an opinion but a philosophical belief which affects how I live my life including my choice of home, how I travel, what I buy, what I eat and drink, what I do with my waste and my hopes and fears."

The tribunal then held that:

- Mr Nicholson's beliefs give rise to a moral order similar to most religions.

- It is difficult to argue that beliefs about the impact of climate change do not fall within this definition. In reaching this view, it rejected an argument that beliefs derived entirely from empirical evidence could not be a 'philosophical belief'.

- In the tribunal's opinion, Mr Nicholson's views went beyond mere opinion as they affect the way he leads his life.

The tribunal did make it clear that this case should not open the floodgates to claims of discrimination based on individuals' beliefs. Any claimant would still have to show that they had been discriminated against on the basis of their belief.

Corinne Day is a trainee solicitor who specialises in information technology law and intellectual property law. She can be contacted via e-mail on corinne.day@lawdit.co.uk