Know your rights

Sikhs on construction sites

Excerpt from Commission for Racial Equality Code of Practice for Employers

CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS NEEDS

Where employees have particular cultural and religious needs which conflict with existing work requirements, it is recommended that employers should consider whether it is reasonably practicable to vary or adapt these requirements to enable such needs to be met. For example, it is recommended that they should not refuse employment to a turbanned Sikh because he could not comply with unjustifiable uniform requirements*.

Other examples of such needs are:

·        Observance of prayer times and religious holidays.

·        Wearing of dress such as sarees and the trousers worn by Asian women.

* (footnote) Section 11 of the Employment Act 1989 exempts turban wearing Sikhs from any requirements to wear safety helmets on a construction site. Where a turban wearing Sikh is injured on a construction site liability for injuries is restricted to the injuries that would have been sustained if the Sikh had been wearing a safety helmet..

Section 12 of the Employment Act provides that if, despite Section 11, an employer requires a turban wearing Sikh to wear other protective head gear such as a safety helmet on a construction site, the employer will not be able to argue that this is a justifiable requirement in any proceedings under the Race Relations Act to determine whether or not it constitutes indirect racial discrimination

Although the Act does not specifically cover religious discrimination, work requirements would generally be unlawful if they have a disproportionately adverse effect on particular racial groups and cannot be shown to be justifiable**.

** (footnote) Genuinely necessary safety requirements may not constitute unlawful discrimination.