Sexual harassment

English v Thomas Sanderson Ltd CA TLR 5 January; SJ 13 January p 31

The claimant alleged that four work colleagues for a protected period subjected him to sexual innuendo suggesting he was homosexual, and their cruel and puerile conduct drove him to leave his job. He was, in fact, a happily married heterosexual man with three daughters, of which his tormentors were perfectly aware. The Employment Tribunal dismissed his claim of sexual harassment. On appeal to the Court of Appeal, one judge agreed with the decision of the Employment Tribunal, holding that harassment was perpetuated on the ground of sexual orientation only where the perceived or assumed sexual orientation that gave rise to it was a substantial cause of the misconduct. In the present case, the reason for the harassment was nothing to do with anyone’s actual sexual orientation; the thoroughly nasty conduct, so-called ‘homophobic banter’, was the vehicle for tormenting the claimant, and in the circumstances, sexual orientation was not the ground of the conduct complained of.