Telling a female colleague that she dresses conservatively compared to her co-workers could be heard as a 'slur' and get you fired for sexual harassment, a tribunal has ruled.
Describing a colleague as 'conservative' could be interpreted as 'frumpy' and a male employee who makes such a remark is guilty of 'objectifying' his co-worker, the employment judge explained.
The ruling came in the case of Jessie Danquah, a business consultant at Shell, who told Naima Masud on a work night out that she was 'conservative compared to other woman at the social who have their boobs out'.
Mr Danquah claimed that his comment was 'objectively true', however, employment Judge Adam Leith said the comment was 'objectively inappropriate' and likely to be a breach of workplace equality laws.
Judge Leith told the tribunal in Croydon, London: 'It was objectively capable of having the effect of violating Ms Masud's dignity, and creating a degrading and humiliating environment for her.
