Christian counsellor seeks ‘religious discrimination’ compensation

Posted 14/04/2010

A man who claims he was sacked because of his religious beliefs is seeking compensation from his former employer.

Gary McFarlane, who was working as a counsellor for Relate in 2008, refused to see a gay couple because he said doing so would contradict his Christian values.

However, this resulted in him being dismissed. Mr McFarlane launched a claim for unfair dismissal and religious discrimination and is taking his case to the Court of Appeal today (April 15th 2010).

“I am facing a real uphill struggle. Homosexuality is championed over other rights, particularly religion,” he remarked.

It is currently against the law for an employer to discriminate based on a person’s religious beliefs. However, this can be hard to prove because religious beliefs are difficult to define.

Anyone confused about such an issue should contact an employment law solicitor.