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Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Calling a middle-aged white woman a 'Karen' is a 'borderline racist, sexist and ageist slur', employment tribunal says
Calling a middle-aged white woman a 'Karen' is 'borderline racist, sexist and ageist', an employment tribunal has found. The term – used to describe a female who is perceived as entitled or excessively demanding – is 'pejorative', a judge said. The ruling came in the case of black charity worker Sylvia Constance, 74, who accused her bosses of targeting her because of her race and age. In a complaint written on her behalf, female managers at Mencap were said to have acted like the stereotypical 'Karen', having 'weaponised their privilege and more powerful position against [her]'. But employment judge George Alliott said: 'We note [the use of] the slang term "Karen", which is a pejorative and borderline racist, sexist and ageist term.' Referring to someone as a Karen began as an internet meme popularised during Covid. It suggests 'Karens' are the kind of women who demand to 'speak to the manager' to complain, and is also associated with excessive use of Facebook, being anti-vaccination and even a blonde bob haircut. The hearing in Watford was told Ms Constance joined Mencap as a support worker in Harpenden, Hertfordshire, in 2016. In 2021, Claire Wilson took over as boss of the residential home where she worked and faced 'open hostility' from Ms Constance. In October that year, Ms Wilson suspended Ms Constance over claims she had bullied residents and staff. A week later, the employee filed a grievance. The tribunal heard that in February 2022, the disciplinary process against her was terminated with no action taken. Ms Constance went off sick, and in April filed another grievance, written on her behalf by friend Christine Yates. The tribunal heard that Mencap repeatedly tried to hold a meeting into her grievance. Ms Constance refused to attend, and it was held in her absence in June. The grievance was dismissed. A year later, during which time she had not returned to work, she was sacked due to 'an irrevocable breakdown in the relationship' with Mencap. Ms Constance sued the charity for unfair dismissal, race and age discrimination and victimisation. However, all her claims were dismissed. The judge said: 'We find that the complaints levelled against [Ms Constance] were legitimate and did not constitute a targeted racist campaign against her.'
Times
9 hours ago
- Times
Calling white middle-aged women Karen ‘borders on racism'
Describing a middle-aged white woman as a 'Karen' is borderline unlawful, a judge has said amid a bitter row at a mental health charity. The slang term, used increasingly since the pandemic, refers to middle-aged white women who angrily rebuke those they view as socially inferior. Sitting in an employment tribunal, a judge has now said that the term is pejorative because it implies the woman is excessively and unreasonably demanding. Use of the term started as an internet meme. It is also associated with excessive use of Facebook, opposition to vaccinations and having a blonde bob haircut. Judge George Alliott made his remarks in a ruling on a claim brought by Sylvia Constance, a 74-year-old black charity worker who has accused bosses of targeting her because of her race and age. In what was described at a tribunal hearing in Watford as a 'trenchant' complaint, female managers at Mencap were accused of acting 'like the stereotypical Karen' by having 'weaponised their privilege and more powerful position' against Constance. 'There is also something very sordid about the way in which white, female management have facilitated racism … [and given] a misogynistic, racist view of the black complainant,' the grievance said. Alliott said the tribunal noted that Karen was 'a pejorative and borderline racist, sexist and ageist term'. Constance, who described herself as black British, joined the charity as a support worker for adults with learning disabilities in Harpenden, Hertfordshire, in 2016. She was based at a residential home that provided individual flats to 11 residents. Five years later, Claire Wilson took over as manager. The tribunal heard that on her arrival Wilson faced 'open hostility' from Constance, who 'sighed' at her, responded with one-word answers and on one occasion shouted at Wilson for 'hassling' her. The pair clashed on several occasions. The manager accused Constance of having 'blinkers on' and being 'too loud'. Wilson suspended Constance in 2021 over claims she had bullied residents and staff. A week later, while an investigation was under way, Constance filed a grievance. By the next year, Mencap managers had dropped the disciplinary process and took no action against Constance. Constance then went on sick leave and filed another grievance, written on her behalf by her friend, Christine Yates. 'The language used by Christine Yates in the document is trenchant,' the tribunal said, citing the reference to the term 'Karen'. The complaint went on to say that 'despite being reinstated', Constance had 'a significant loss of trust and confidence in Harpenden Mencap's current management structure'. It alleged that there was 'clearly a hostile environment for black staff' at the home, which made it 'unsafe' for Constance 'to return to face further victimisation'. The tribunal heard that over subsequent months managers repeatedly attempted to arrange a meeting to discuss the grievance with Constance. However, she refused to attend. A meeting was held in her absence and the grievance was rejected. Constance had failed to return to work after a year and was sacked because of 'an irrevocable breakdown in the relationship' with her bosses. That prompted legal proceedings for unfair dismissal, race and age discrimination and victimisation. The judge has now dismissed all the claims against the charity, saying that there was 'no suggestion that any of the actions of Claire Wilson were prompted by a racist sentiment'.
Telegraph
10 hours ago
- General
- Telegraph
Calling someone Karen is ‘borderline racist, sexist and ageist'
Calling a middle-aged white woman a Karen is 'borderline racist, sexist and ageist', an employment tribunal has ruled. The slang term – often used to describe a woman who is perceived as entitled or excessively demanding – was 'pejorative', a judge said. The ruling came in the case of Sylvia Constance, a 74-year-old black charity worker, who accused her bosses of targeting her because of her race and her age. In a 'trenchant' complaint written on her behalf, female managers at Mencap were accused of acting 'like the stereotypical 'Karen'' having 'weaponised their privilege and more powerful position against [her]'. 'There is also something very sordid about the way in which white, female management have facilitated racism... [and given] a misogynistic, racist view of the black Complainant.' the grievance said. Regarding the complaint, Judge George Alliott said: 'We note [the use of] the slang term 'Karen', which is a pejorative and borderline racist, sexist and ageist term.' Referring to someone as a Karen began as an internet meme, which was popularised during the Covid-19 pandemic. The stereotype suggests Karens are the kind of woman who demands to 'speak to the manager' to make a complaint and is also associated with excessive use of Facebook. Ms Constance, who describes herself as Black British, started working for Mencap as a support worker for adults with learning disabilities in Harpenden in 2016. In 2021, Claire Wilson took over as the manager of the residential home, which provided individual flats to 11 residents, where she worked. 'Open hostility' The tribunal was told that on her arrival, Ms Wilson faced 'open hostility' from Ms Constance, who 'sighed' at her, responded with one-word answers and on one occasion shouted at her for 'hassling' her while she was busy. The hearing was told the pair clashed on several occasions, with the manager accusing the support worker of having 'blinkers on' and of being 'too loud'. In October that year, Ms Wilson suspended Ms Constance over claims she had bullied residents and staff. Just over a week later, while an investigation was underway, the employee filed a grievance over her treatment. The tribunal heard that in February 2022, the disciplinary process against her was terminated and no action against her was taken. Ms Constance went off sick and in April, she filed another grievance, written on her behalf by a friend. The tribunal heard that over the following months, Mencap repeatedly attempted to hold a meeting about her grievance. But Ms Constance refused to attend. In the end, it was held in her absence in June and dismissed.
