EMPLOYERS may have to provide prayer-rooms for staff and
allow religious holidays as part of radical new laws to prevent discrimination
at work.
The proposals, which have been described as political correctness gone wild,
are set to revolutionize the British workplace.
Due to come into force in December, the legislation could see bosses taken to
an employment tribunal unless they can accommodate all faiths and religious
groups.
Mandy Laurie, an expert in employment law and senior associate with Dundas and Wilson, an Edinburgh company, said bosses would
be walking a tightrope to ensure they did not break the law.
She said: "It does seem to be political correctness gone wild. Employers
will be forced to appreciate other people’s religions. If staff apply for
holidays for religious purposes, they will need to be accommodating. It could
be seen as discrimination if they don’t give people time off to pray. They
might need to offer them a prayer room.
"If an employer refused to give a Jewish person the day off on Saturday,
that could be a problem. They could point to discrimination."
Critics say the changes will create a bureaucratic nightmare as all faiths will
need to be taken into account, raising the prospect of Christians refusing to
work Sundays.
Recruitment could also be called into question, as Muslims could claim to have
suffered discrimination if an interview is conducted in a bar because of the
association with alcohol.
"They will have to be alive to the fact that if someone is a Muslim, it is
not appropriate to interview in a pub," added Ms Laurie. "The person
may feel discriminated against because they don’t drink."
The changes are contained in the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief)
Regulations 2003.
Lawyers say the provisions also throw up a number of issues in terms of
sectarianism, especially in the west of Scotland. Employers would be subject to
a tribunal claim unless they offer a "rigorous" recruitment policy,
open to both Catholics and Protestants.
Last night, Allan Hogarth, a spokesman for the Confederation
of British Industry in Scotland, said he hoped workers would take a
common-sense approach.
"Business needs to ensure that it operates efficiently and
effectively," he added. "Employees need to retain a dose of common
sense when putting in their requests."
Company bosses will have to remain vigilant if they are to keep up with the
rapidly expanding European legislation. To date, the law relating to
discrimination has focused on three areas - sex, race and disability - but they
will now have to get to grips with laws prohibiting discrimination on the
grounds of religion or belief, age and sexual orientation.
Carol Fox, an employment lawyer in Edinburgh, claimed it was essential that the
law was updated to reflect the religious and cultural mix of 21st-century
Britain.
"A lot of businesses seem to think that they operate in a sealed
bubble," she said. "This is the first stage in addressing that we
live in a multicultural society, and that employers will be employing people
from different backgrounds and sexual orientation.
"Unless they employ robots, employers will not be able to get away from
that."