Fighting racism in the workplace

Every once in a while, a difficult and complex area of law is crystallised by the circumstances of a particular high-profile case. The most recent example of this being the matter of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, whose mismanagement of historical allegations of racism made by cricketer Azeem Rafiq is now the subject of investigation.

Having downplayed the incidents as ‘friendly and good-natured banter’ that did not warrant disciplinary action, the club now finds itself at the centre of a legal, financial and reputational storm – serving as a stark warning across other industries too.

There is no doubt that it is a complex and emotive problem, but ignorance is no excuse. Here we take a closer look at how the law views racism at work and what employers can do to better educate themselves on the subject.