Vulnerability not inextricably linked with migrant status

Case 8: The facts

A Nigerian migrant domestic worker who was appallingly treated by her employer brought a claim for race discrimination. The claim failed in the tribunal and she appealed:

The ruling

The Employment Appeal tribunal (EAT) dismissed her appeal, concluding that the reason for the poor treatment was not because of her race but rather because of her vulnerability, and that vulnerability is not an attribute particular to any racial group.

The EAT did not accept that vulnerability is inextricably linked to migrant status. Instead, the EAT said the claimant’s vulnerability depended on a whole range of circumstances, including poor socio-economic background, lack of English, lack of support network, control by the employer over accommodation and eligibility for a visa, and the inherent imbalance of power between the two parties.

Even though most of these factors were, in practice, the result of the claimant being in the UK working as a domestic worker subject to immigration control, the EAT refused to find that the appalling treatment she received was because of her race.

Taiwo v Olaigbe UKEAT/0407/12/ZT