In 2025 political discourse seems to be increasingly polarised, and it seems that an increasing number of people hold political views that others find extreme and offensive. This leads to heated disagreements arising more and more in all spheres of life, which inevitably spills over into the workplace. An increasing number of employees are finding themselves hauled before their bosses, for expressing their political views in the workplace or publishing them on social media in a manner that may risk the reputation of the company they work for.
Many employees are surprised when they are disciplined or even dismissed for expressing their opinions, as they assume they are protected by their right to freedom of expression. It is therefore useful to consider the protections that are available in UK employment law for employees who express their political views at work or in public.
Equality Act 2010 – Philosophical Belief
Under section 10 the Equality Act 2010 (‘the Equality Act’), it is unlawful for an employee to suffer discrimination because of a protected philosophical belief. There is a depth of case law which considers the question of which beliefs amount to philosophical beliefs worthy of protection under the Equality Act. The key legal decision on this issue is the case of Grainger plc and others v Nicholson [2010]. In this case, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (‘EAT’) set out a test which a belief must comply with in order to be a protected philosophical belief for the purposes of the Equality Act:
- The belief must be genuinely held.
- It must be a belief, not an opinion or viewpoint based on the present state of information available.
- It must be a belief as to a weighty and substantial aspect of human life and behaviour.
- It must attain a certain level of cogency, seriousness, cohesion and importance.
- It must be worthy of respect in a democratic society, not be incompatible with human dignity and not conflict with the fundamental rights of others.
From point two of the test set out above, an employee who has been disciplined or dismissed for expressing a standalone political view will unlikely be protected under the Equality Act, as the test specifically excludes viewpoints or opinions from legal protection. However, if an employee expresses a political ideology or system of belief, broader than just a single viewpoint, this political belief could amount to a philosophical belief provided that the other limbs of the test are complied with. If a political belief can be argued to be a philosophical belief, an employee expressing that belief can enjoy protection from discrimination under the Equality Act.
The last point of the above test can also be an obstacle to political beliefs being granted protection under the Equality Act. The last point requires that a belief must be worthy of respect in a democratic society and not in conflict with human dignity and the fundamental rights of others. If an employee holds a political belief that is extreme, it is more likely that a Tribunal would find the belief to be non-compliant with this limb of the test and therefore not worthy of protection under the Equality Act.
Employment Rights Act 1996 – Dismissal for Political Opinions
Where an employee’s political opinion does not amount to a philosophical belief which is protected under the Equality Act, an employee still has the right to not be unfairly dismissed under the Employment Rights Act 1996 (‘the Employment Rights Act’). In brief, if an employer dismisses an employee without a fair reason or without a fair procedure, that employee may be entitled to bring an unfair dismissal claim against the employer in the Employment Tribunal. An employer must show they had a reason to dismiss (for example capability, conduct or redundancy) and that they acted reasonably in treating this reason as sufficient justification to dismiss the employee.
Usually, an employee must have worked for their employer for a period of at least two years continuously before they have the right to bring an unfair dismissal claim. However, section 108(4) of the Employment Rights Act makes an exception if the reason or principal reason for a dismissal is an employee’s “political opinions or affiliation”. If the reason for dismissal is an employee’s political opinion or affiliation, that employee may have the right to bring an unfair dismissal claim even if they had been working for their employer for less than two years.
Whilst this is a helpful exception for employees who do not have two years’ service and express political opinions, it is not a guaranteed protection. Firstly, the exception only entitles an employee with less than two years’ service who has been dismissed because of their political opinion to bring an unfair dismissal claim. In order to succeed in their unfair dismissal claim, the employee would still need to prove that the dismissal was unfair in the circumstances, i.e. that their political opinion or affiliation did not reasonably justify dismissal, or a fair procedure was not followed. Depending on the nature of their political belief, their dismissal may still be justified, particularly if their opinion can reasonably be considered extreme or offensive to others.
Secondly, the exception under section 108(4) of the Employment Rights Act has been considered in case law. In Scottish Federation of Housing Association v Jones [2022], the EAT stated that this exception should be interpreted narrowly, only applying when the content of an employee’s political opinion or affiliation is the principal reason for dismissal. In this case, the employee was dismissed after she said she wanted to be a political candidate. The EAT found that she was dismissed because she was not willing to be politically neutral, in a position where neutrality was important and her employment contract prevented her from having a formal political role. The EAT did not accept that a dismissal for failing to comply with a requirement of political neutrality was a dismissal for an employee’s political views or affiliation, therefore the section 108(4) exception did not apply.
It is generally advisable for employees to be cautious about expressing political views at work and on social media, as this could land them in hot water with disciplinary action and ultimately dismissal. Whilst UK employment law provides some protection for employees who want to express their beliefs and opinions, these protections are by no means guaranteed and will only apply when very specific legal thresholds are met.
This blog was written by Yavnik Ganguly, Solicitor at didlaw.
