Q. I employ a small but rapidly expanding workforce and am concerned whether I will be liable should my employees discriminate against disabled clients:
A. Yes, you will be liable, whether you knew they were discriminating or not, unless you can show that you took all reasonable steps to prevent discrimination from taking place. Those reasonable steps will include:
- Having an equality policy within the firm that specifically sets out the firm's intention not to discriminate against disabled clients;
- Ensuring that all staff are aware of that policy;
- Training the staff in what is expected of them with regard to disabled client;
- Carrying out regular monitoring to ensure that discrimination is not taking place.
Q An employee is always telling jokes, some of which are racist. No one has
complained yet. Do I have to do something about it?
A. Again, yes ,you must deal with the situation before it becomes a problem. Racist jokes
can amount to racial harassment, and as an employer you could be held to be liable
for the actions of that employee if offence were to be caused. You should also be
aware that offence might be caused to someone from an ethnic group other than the
one that is the subject of the jokes. These and other scenarios ought properly to be
included in a racial equality policy.
