Guernsey Press

Anti-discrimination law needs delaying for more discussion

I HAVE just endeavoured to wade through the anti-discrimination legislation consultation document.

Published

One loses the will to live.

It runs to hundreds of pages but, up front, admits that no research has been undertaken as to whether discrimination is actually a problem in Guernsey at all. Rather, the thrust seems to be the dreaded ‘compliance with international standards’. Why? Others have written on this general issue. The point is that doing business on a small island is inconvenient for obvious reasons – think of the delayed flights due to fog, time involved in travel generally, etc. So we must provide something special in terms of ease of doing business, failing which we won’t do much business at all.

We really should only pass legislation on the basis of good evidence that it is really necessary. This legislation, by its very length and complexity, really does need justification based on a factual cost/benefit analysis. It will cost millions (paid by the taxpayers) to implement and, quite possibly, cause small local businesses to give up altogether and larger international outfits to wonder why they are here.

In my experience as a semi-retired ex-partner of a law firm, most people, including employers, try to treat people decently and with respect without prompting. Is it really necessary to crush them with more and more regulation, which our current States seems intent on doing? In the employment area, the scarcity of labour v. demand for it is what protects employees. Employers are desperate for good people and are not going to be rejecting competent potential staff for no good reason, or because they are racists or whatever.

So much for the generalities. A couple of specific points (out of hundreds):

The legislation will, it seems, cut through the one-year probationary period under current Employment Law legislation, so no longer will an employer be able to let go an employee on probation within that period without risk of a claim because the Anti-Discrimination Law will override the unfair dismissal exemption. This will have a chilling effect on recruitment.

Allowing ‘disability’ to cover mental health issues opens a terrible can of worms, as has been found in the UK. Pretty much everything is covered, including ‘stress’. This will, effectively, allow an unlimited excuse to bunk off for those who are so inclined and for them, if I may so put it, to give the finger to their employer (and their more diligent co-workers who will be forced to pick up the slack).

The costs of implementing this legislation will not only fall on the taxpayer yet again but also tend to reduce wages and job opportunities for all workers in Guernsey.

This legislation really should be delayed for further discussion and more precise drafting if we are to avoid significant damage to our economy and, indeed, our freedom of action generally.

JOHN F. DYKE

Address withheld.