Employment law SOS: How to manage strong political views
1 min read
<b>A team leader has been expressing his strong (some might say extremist) political views to others during shift breaks. It isn't going down well with the others, particularly his team members. What can we do about it?</b>
The subject of employees holding extreme political views has been tested in the European Court of Human Rights recently, when the UK was held to be in violation of the European Convention on Human Rights because it does not provide specific protection to employees dismissed on the grounds of their political beliefs.
It is likely that UK law will be amended so that all employees have the right not to be unfairly dismissed for their political views immediately upon commencing employment, rather than having to wait for the two-year qualifying period.
This does not mean that dismissals for employees who hold extreme political views will be unfair. An employer may be able to argue that they have a 'substantial reason' for disciplining and ultimately dismissing a team leader if colleagues refuse to work with that person. As we are in a society that allows freedom of speech and political views, then this is an area which has to be dealt with sensitively.
The best approach is for the employer to commence an informal process with the team leader, explaining that his fellow employees have raised informal complaints and that, if a formal grievance is issued, it will have to be investigated.
If it is found that the team leader's conduct and views are inappropriate, a formal disciplinary procedure may have to be followed. Ultimately, if the team leader refuses to modify his behaviour and his colleagues refuse to work with him, there may be grounds for dismissal.
