Thanks to Government support, a private members’ bill by the Lib Dem MP Wera Hobhouse to protect employees from third-party ‘harassment’ sailed through the Commons last week and is on its way to the Lords. Unfortunately, it poses a grave threat to free speech, writes Toby in the Spectator.
The difficulty arises because the legislation Hobhouse and the Government are proposing to amend is the Equality Act 2010. Among other things, this imposes a legal duty on employers to protect workers from harassment by other employees, defined as “unwanted conduct relating to a protected characteristic” (age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation) if that conduct has the purpose or effect of “creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment”. The bill will expand that duty so bosses will be liable for harassment of employees by members of the public they come into contact with while doing their jobs.
If we were just talking about sexual harassment, that would be one thing. But the bill extends third-party liability to every type of “unwanted conduct” prohibited by the Equality Act, including overheard comments. You may think I’m making that up, but in 2017 an employment tribunal awarded £1,000 to a former administrative assistant at the law firm Shoosmiths who was upset when she overheard another employee say “struggling immigrants should go back to their country”. The tribunal found it “reasonable” for the woman – an immigrant herself – to be upset, even though the remark wasn’t directed at her, and her harassment claim was upheld.
Such findings have poisoned the atmosphere in offices up and down the country, with employers frantically trying to limit their legal liability by banning an ever-expanding list of phrases, forcing staff to undergo ‘unconscious bias training’ and insisting they declare their preferred pronouns to curry favour with trans and non-binary employees. If the Hobhouse bill becomes law, this climate of fear will spread. Employers will have a duty to protect their workers from overhearing ‘upsetting’ remarks made not only by colleagues, but also by third parties.
This means, says Toby: “If a barmaid or stadium steward overhears something they find upsetting that relates to a protected characteristic, even if it isn’t addressed to them, they can still sue their employers for harassment.” This will lead owners to “inevitably start policing their customers’ speech”.
So much for the Tories’ war on woke, he concludes.
Worth reading in ful.
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It won’t be long before the growing establishment trope that anti vax = conspiracy theorists = anti semetic = finable speech.
conveniently as the questions of vax damages increases this threat can be legislated against.
No one who judges the Tories by their actions, rather than their cheap words, will be even slightly surprised by this. Their position and direction of travel on this kind of nonsense has been clear for some time.
Until people reject the main three parties, this will continue regardless of who is in power.
At the last GE there were only 3 candidates in my constituency, Corby: Con, Lab, LibDem, all ironically named.
So I didn’t vote.
Couldn’t bear the thought of either Johnson or Corbyn being PM, so I voted LibDem, but next time I will spoil my ballot if there is a similar “choice”. I personally think spoiling ballots is better than not voting – it delivers a protest at what’s on offer.
I have been following the Reform party, the only one with a proper manifesto, and the will to actually change things. The other parties seem to be fairly identical, woke, and brainless. Don’t spoil your paper, just vote Reform, and even if they get no MPs it will be a huge shock from the numbers of votes. I am hoping that about 50 Tory MPs get some B**** and resign the whip and Join Reform. Then there is a serious chance of something changing.
“So much for the Tories’ war on woke, he concludes.”
What exactly have the Tories delivered, in terms of “conservatism”, since they came back to power 13 years ago? They must be destroyed utterly if conservatism is to have any meaningful political representation. People like TY must come out and tell people to stop voting Conservative. Same goes for all those people writing in the Spectator and the Telegraph criticising government policy. They’ve had ample chance – hoping they will suddenly come round is delusional. They have played the “we’ll save you from worse under Labour” card every time, and people fall for it. It’s got to stop.
This is not a Conservative government. Conservatism died along with Mrs T.
Bang on tof.
They will all have to wear ear defenders all the time!
Ultimately this legislation – is it really – will close businesses. Once word goes round amongst the ‘oppressed sons and daughters of the non-white class,’ the alphabet mob and the rest of the wokerati this will be a cluster bomb law. Everyone fancying a few quid out of a bar, pub, restaurant, small garage, corner shop, doctors and dentist surgery etc will be clapping in anticipation.
I can just imagine BLM and the alphabet fraternity organising courses now based on their own plants and some bait and trap games. This could cause bedlam.
The evil Lib Dim turd needs a serious re-education.
Fancy that – she’s German / British. Somebody is extracting the U.
And this could kill businesses indirectly. How would any of us feel if a pub for example was involved in one of these court cases? We would be thinking, dodgy staff and attracting a dodgy clientele. Stay clear.
As I keep pointing out, the objective is the destruction of our country, people, culture and landscape.
I’m shocked, It’s not like the Tories to promise one thing and then deliver the opposite.
Assuming there was any element of honesty behind this so-called legislation the question that needs to be asked is – what good will this do? Anybody?
This can only lead to nastiness and aggravation, unpleasantness and upset. There cannot be any winners from implementing and actioning this rubbish. None whatsoever. Well perhaps plod will appreciate this for solving crime figures but otherwise?
Rhetorical of course.
Orwell spins in his grave…..
The Heritage Party rejects entirely this nonsense and, not least, Net Zero.
Pray tell how these laws will be policed at sports events?
The UK police force has morphed effortlessly into the Keystone Cops. At games I’ve attended they are treated like hot dog vendors and ignored.
One chooses to take offence. Offence is not given but taken, which says everything about the insecurities of the offended.
Maybe pubs need to have a ‘health warning’ prominently displayed to the effect that it is a free speech zone & that if anyone takes chooses to take offence they will be responded to with something along the lines of ‘So?’ or ‘And?’. Personal attacks/insults will not be tolerated & those engaging in such will be dealt with by removing or banning them from the pub. Robust discussions welcome.
Interviews for a job role will also need to include robust questioning on the sensitivities of potential staff to exclude those likely to flounder in a pub when alcohol will loosen folks’ inhibitions.
There have to be ways around this & as ever, we the people are sovereign & must take personal responsibility for our words & deeds.
Neighbour spying and informing on neighbour.
Children informing on their parents, encouraged by schools and the authorities, for any ‘wrong’ opinions.
Making accusations that may or may not be based upon facts.
Only ‘orthodox’ opinions being allowed.