Zionism may be a protected characteristic under UK law. This is a potential upside of the Employment Tribunal’s decision on David Miller’s claim for unfair dismissal by Bristol University.

On 5 February  2023  an employment tribunal ruled that Professor Miller was unfairly dismissed, and that his anti-Zionist beliefs qualified as a protected characteristic under section 10 of the Equality Act 2010. He had been dismissed by Bristol University in October 2021 after making comments about Israel which many people deemed to be antisemitic.

Jonathan Turner, Chief Executive of UKLFI said: “The result is only a partial victory for David Miller, who was criticised by the Tribunal for “culpable and blameworthy” conduct that contributed to his dismissal. As a result the Tribunal concluded that the compensation for his dismissal should be halved. They also considered that it should be further reduced because there was a 30% chance that the University would have justifiably dismissed him later.

“In brief, the Tribunal held that disciplinary action against Professor Miller was warranted, but that summary dismissal was disproportionate, particularly as the university had not previously been clear and consistent as to what was acceptable. The Tribunal thought that he should have been given a clear warning about his remarks targeting students and, presumably, that he should have been dismissed only if he then transgressed contrary to the warning.

Controversially, the Tribunal held that Professor Miller’s views on Zionism – that it is inherently racist, imperialistic and colonial and ought to be opposed – are a “protected characteristic” for the purposes of employment law. They could have concluded, consistently with existing case-law, that these views are not protected since they are incompatible with fundamental rights of the Jewish people to self-determination in Israel.

On the other hand, recognition that anti-Zionism (even in its most extreme form) is a protected characteristic, should ensure that Zionism is also treated as a protected characteristic. This could have substantial benefits in fighting discrimination, harassment and victimisation against Jews and others for real or supposed support for Israel.”