I think I am suffering race discrimination at work. What can I do?

Racist behaviour towards you, conducted by anybody at your place of work, is against the law.

Race discrimination can take many different forms. It might be direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, racial harassment, or victimisation.

Racist behaviour might include:

• being shouted at;
• being called racist names;
• racial 'jokes' and ‘banter’, including offensive tweets, text messages, social media posts and screen savers;
• being denied certain benefits;
• being overlooked for promotion and/or training; or
• being bullied. 

All good employers will have an equal opportunities policy in place, as well as a policy banning bullying and harassment. Your employer should take a zero tolerance approach to all forms of race discrimination and harassment at work. Get hold of a copy of the relevant policies.

Your employer should take an equally firm 'zero tolerance' approach to all abuse by third parties, such as customers, suppliers, patients or clients, and from October 2026 will have a legal duty to do so.  

As a practical matter, make sure you make a note of the behaviour you found offensive, including who did it and when it took place. Keep a copy of any offensive messages including texts, tweets and Facebook posts. Keep a diary note of any attempts you make to get the behaviour to stop and what effect it had.

If you are a member of a trade union, talk to your union representative. If what you have experienced is not an isolated incident, it may be that your organisation has a wider problem with its culture, for example casual racist jokes and remarks passed off as "banter". If so, this must be tackled urgently, and needs to be addressed with the utmost seriousness by your employer. Where a union is recognised, your union can play an important role here.

Occasionally, the person making the remarks may not appreciate their effect on other people or how upsetting they are. There can be times when explaining to them how the behaviour is making you feel is enough to put a stop to it. Only you will know whether an approach of this kind is something you feel comfortable doing.

If this kind of approach is not successful – or if you don’t feel comfortable speaking to the person concerned – you should raise it with a manager – someone more senior than the culprit. Explain what is happening and ask your employer to make it stop. Keep a record of your complaint.

Your employer should take your complaint seriously and investigate it promptly and carefully, which may include interviewing witnesses. 

In 2020, the Equality and Human Rights Commission released guidance on harassment – including racial harassment - which sets out standards that employers are expected to meet. This is a useful resource that may persuade your employer to take action. The guidance suggests that employers should:

• develop policies in consultation with any recognised trade union and train staff to implement those policies;
• maintain centralised records in enough detail to enable trends to be analysed;
• conduct staff surveys;
• use “lessons learned” sessions once complaints have been resolved;
• listen to feedback from employees, for example through exit interviews;
• proactively watch for the warning signs of workplace harassment and bullying, beyond formal and informal complaints, such as increased sickness absence, changes in behaviour, comments in exit interviews, a dip in performance or avoidance of a certain colleague. 

The guidance recommends ways to enable workers to raise issues and sets out what employers should do if workers ask for no action to be taken. If you're considering a claim of race discrimination to an employment tribunal, you should normally use the grievance procedure first – although you must bring your claim within the tribunal time limit even if the grievance process has not yet been exhausted. Tribunal time limits are currently very short – just three months. 

If you are considering making a claim to an employment tribunal you will need to notify Acas. Acas we'll offer you early conciliation. Early conciliation is voluntary. You and your employer can choose whether to take part.

Discrimination law is complex, so make sure you seek advice at an early stage before bringing an employment tribunal claim. If you are in a union, you can speak to your representative for advice. Your local Citizens Advice or Law Centre may be able to help.