| Employees who believe that they have been | | | | Employment Tribunal to draw any adverse |
| racially discriminated against at work and are | | | | inferences it considers just and equitable, including |
| considering pursuing legal action may serve a race | | | | the inference that the employer committed an |
| discrimination questionnaire upon the employer. | | | | unlawful discriminatory act, where it believes the |
| The questionnaire procedure is set out in the | | | | employer deliberately and without good reason did |
| Race Relations Act (Questions and Replies) Order | | | | not respond within the time limit and/or the |
| 1977. | | | | responses were evasive or ambiguous. This |
| The employee serves his questions using the | | | | means that an Employment Tribunal may be able |
| standard questionnaire form RR65. The form | | | | to make a finding of race discrimination based |
| contains a few standard questions, like to what | | | | solely on the adverse inferences it has drawn |
| extend does the employer concur with the | | | | regarding the questionnaire although, in reality, it is |
| employee's account of events, what is the | | | | unlikely to do that. However, the Employment |
| employer's account of events, and does the | | | | Tribunal may take a serious view on the |
| employer accept that the employee was | | | | employer's failure to respond properly and be |
| discriminated against and if not, then why not. | | | | persuaded by it, along with other accompanying |
| The employee may append his own specific | | | | evidence. The likelihood of the Employment |
| questions to those standard questions. | | | | Tribunal drawing adverse inferences will be |
| Serving a race discrimination questionnaire is not a | | | | increased if the employee asked reasonable |
| mandatory step in dealing with the discrimination | | | | questions and made efforts to chase the |
| through formal legal proceedings; it is optional. | | | | employer and encouraged it to respond properly. |
| However, it is a step that affords the employee a | | | | The employer will not know the consequences of |
| unique opportunity (in that questions of an | | | | its failures until it is facing the Employment |
| exploratory nature are permitted) to gather | | | | Tribunal, at which point it will probably be too late |
| evidence in support of his case, as well as, to | | | | for the employer. An employee that avails himself |
| acquire additional information for the purpose of | | | | of the questionnaire procedure automatically gains |
| deciding whether to take legal action. With that in | | | | this tactical advantage. |
| mind, the employee should design his questions to | | | | The serving of a race discrimination questionnaire |
| reveal evidence that proves race discrimination | | | | does not signify the beginning of any legal action |
| which is known only to the employer, reveal fully | | | | by the employee; the initiation of legal action is a |
| the employer's case, and determine which facts | | | | separate procedure. If no legal action is brought, |
| are accepted by the employer and which are in | | | | then the questionnaire and the response remain a |
| dispute. | | | | private communication between the employer and |
| Once served, the race discrimination questionnaire | | | | employee. If the employee is seriously considering |
| needs to be answered in writing within a | | | | taking legal action based on other evidence that |
| reasonable time period, set as 8 weeks from the | | | | suggests race discrimination, then the serving of a |
| date the employer received it. The employer's | | | | questionnaire would be appropriate as the |
| responses may be submitted as evidence before | | | | employer's response may help the employee to |
| an Employment Tribunal. The employer does not | | | | decide. However, where the employee is not |
| have to respond to the questionnaire, and cannot | | | | seriously considering legal action, then the serving |
| be ordered to do so by the Employment Tribunal. | | | | of a questionnaire would be inappropriate because |
| However, failure to answer within the time limit | | | | doing so may unnecessarily vex the employer and |
| and/or evasive or ambiguous answers can be held | | | | or affect the employee emotionally into pursuing a |
| against the employer. | | | | legal action he didn't initially want to pursue. |
| The Race Relations Act 1976 allows an | | | | |