Four racism incidents in government recorded in past two years

Wednesday 17 June 2020

The government has insisted it has “zero tolerance” for racial discrimination after it emerged that there had been four recorded cases of racist abuse towards employees within the organisation over the past two years.

The revelation comes after Jersey’s government were challenged to do more to dismantle institutional racism in the workplace by a speaker at a peaceful Black Lives Matter demonstration in People’s Park earlier this month.

The number of racial discrimination incidents was confirmed yesterday by Chief Minister Senator John Le Fondré in his capacity as Chair of the States Employment Board (SEB) - the group of politicians responsible for managing public sector workers’ pay and working conditions - in response to a written question from Deputy Rob Ward. 

Asked what the process is for recording and dealing with racial abuse, the Chair explained that every case is investigated and logged on the government’s Case Management System and an online whistleblower called Expolink. 

Pictured: 18 individuals have been dismissed by the States Employment Board for disciplinary reasons since 2018.

He added that the Bullying and Harassment Policy is followed in cases of racial discrimination, which is classified as a matter of “gross misconduct”.

Senator Le Fondré said that any victims of such abuse are offered line manager support, mediation, counselling and occupational referrals, adding: “Where appropriate, a link with the case management team, unconnected to the case investigations provides additional assurance for our duty of care to maintain communication.”

When Express asked the outcomes of the four recorded cases since 2018, a spokesperson said that they wouldn’t provide details of individual cases. 

However, they added: “The government has a zero tolerance for discriminatory or racist behaviour and it is considered gross misconduct if found.   

“Gross misconduct is most likely to result in dismissal.” 

A response to a separate written question from Deputy Mike Higgins revealed that 18 individuals have been dismissed by the States Employment Board for disciplinary reasons since 2018.

Pictured: The number of dismissals in the public sector in recent years.

A specific breakdown was not provided, but the SEB Chair noted that the nature of the disciplinary matters over the past five years spanned “fraud, data protection, bullying, safeguarding, health and safety and criminal offences”. 

On 6 June, more than 1,000 islanders joined a peaceful protest at People’s Park as part of a global movement demanding that policymakers do more to dismantle racism in institutions, workplaces and the wider community.

Lesley Katsande added to those calls locally, saying: “To Jersey senior leaders, our young people have come to say: ‘We see you, your actions. The system has to change. It is not working.’

“Our young people have come here to say: ‘We know what is happening in Jersey, the underlying discrimination. Systematic and institutional racism is not only in America, but in Jersey as well.”

Pictured: More than 1,000 islanders turned out to support the Black Lives Matter protest.

She went on to advocate for more robust training, guidelines and policies and procedures “to investigate racism and discrimination in workplaces, schools and the wider community”, adding that the complexity of this work should not be seen as an excuse not to do it.

In a further challenge to the corporate community, Ms Katsande urged investment companies and banks to ensure there is equal pay, as well as acknowledging their “moral duty” to improve and give back to the developing nations they employ individuals from and do business with.

Turning to Minister for Children and Housing and Reform Jersey leader Senator Sam Mézec, who was present at the rally, she asked that he “sit down with all black, Asian and minority ethnic groups in Jersey to hear their experiences in this place”. 

Following the event, Senator Mézec pledged on social media: “This must the start of a greater movement for change. I commit to doing what I can to bring the voices of our BAME communities round the table in government to ensure that their view and concerns are at the heart of how we move forward.”