Frequently Asked Questions

Racial Harassment

 

 

 




Q What is racial harassment?

A Racial harassment is a form of racial discrimination – it is widespread, happens all over the country and many UNISON members have had to deal with it. It divides workers one from another when all workers need unity. Racial harassment can take many forms. However, one thing is clear, it is behaviour or abuse of a racial nature which is unwanted and personally offensive to the recipient. It is the perception of the target that determines whether harassment has taken place, not the intention of the perpetrator.

Racial harassment takes many forms but the result is the same - stress, health problems, loss of confidence and real physical injury. It undermines equality of opportunity making the targets of racial harassment feel marginalised and unable to demand their rights. It can result in black workers leaving their jobs rather than face continuing harassment.

Racial harassment can involve a manager, a supervisor, work colleagues, visitors or patients.

It can include:

  • Abusive language, including racist "jokes"

  • The display of racially offensive written material, graffiti, etc

  • Physical attacks, threatened assaults

  • Unfair allocation of work

  • Exclusion from normal workplace conversation and workplace events

Racial harassment is widespread. Too often people do not report incidents of racial harassment because they fear that complaints will not be taken seriously or they do not know how to make a complaint. People making complaints are often made to feel they are rocking the boat, have no sense of humour, and can even end up isolated and victimised.

Very often work colleagues and management see racial abuse at work as something that just has to be put up with. Women workers can often experience a combination of racial harassment and sexual harassment.


 


Q What is the Race Relations Act?

A Racial harassment can be direct discrimination under the terms of the Race Relations Act 1976. The Act makes discrimination on racial grounds unlawful. Racial grounds refers to race, colour, nationality (including citizenship), ethnic or national origins.

A person complaining of racial harassment needs to show that she/he has been less favourably treated because of their race and that the alleged harassment was to their detriment.

Under the Race Relations Act, an employer can be held liable for the actions of an employee when they occur "in the course of their employment", even if the actions occur without the employer's knowledge or approval. So even if the employer does not know about the harassment, the employer can be held liable.

The Race Relations Act provides a defence for an employer if the employer can show that reasonable steps have been taken to prevent discriminatory actions by employees. The employer must show the actions that have been taken to stop racial harassment.

The Act also states that anyone involved in bringing proceedings, making allegations or giving information concerning racial discrimination, is protected against victimisation. This applies not only to the complainant, but also to the witnesses.

Recent cases have established that employers have a duty, where reasonably possible, to protect employees from being harassed by any third party - whether customer, client or member of the public - with whom they have to deal.

As well as obligations under the Race Relations Act, employers have a duty to provide a safe and healthy working environment. Where racial harassment results in an injury to an employee's health or places them under stress, the employer might be held in breach of their obligations under the Health and Safety at Work Act and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations. Certain acts of racial harassment may amount to unlawful assault, giving rise to civil or criminal liability.





Q Does my employer have a legal duty to protect me from racial harassment at work?

A All workers are entitled to a working environment free from harassment. This includes an environment that is free from racial harassment and it is the employer’s responsibility to ensure, as far as is possible, that the working environment is free from racial harassment. This means that the employer is responsible, not only for their own actions, but for the actions of their employees.

If employers fail to take reasonable steps to stop racial harassment, then they must accept responsibility for a workplace that is polluted by racial harassment.

Along with union pressure, there are a number of factors that are making employers feel the need to take action on racial harassment:

  • Pressure from legal proceedings that have been taken against them

  • An awareness of the increasing number of harassment cases being pursued at Tribunal

  • The knowledge that since 1994 there is no ceiling on the compensation an employer may have to pay

  • A growing awareness of their responsibilities to deal with racial harassment under the Race Relations Act and the Health and Safety at Work Act

  • A growing recognition of the consequences of negative publicity on their businesses

  • A growing awareness of harassment at work arising from the European Code of Practice on sexual harassment

The Protection from Harassment Act came into force in June 1997. This Act prohibits a course of conduct by a person which amounts to harassment of another person and which the harasser knows or ought to know amounts to harassment of the other.