Industry news
Polish worker wins 'Borat' tribunal
Posted Tue, 30 Aug 2011
An engineer has been awarded £2,250 in compensation after a tribunal ruled his nickname Borat was racist.
Adrian Ruda, from Poland, was "degraded and humiliated" by being linked to the comic character played by Sacha Baron Cohen, the tribunal found.
The tribunal ruled that someone who was not from eastern Europe would not have been called Borat. It also noted that the Borat image insults eastern Europeans.
Employment judge Jonathan Whittaker ruled that the use of the nickname "violated" the worker's dignity and created "a degrading, humiliating and defensive work environment" for him.
The tribunal also ordered Mr Ruda's firm TEi Ltd, in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, to introduce a policy on workplace harassment and bullying
TEI will now have to train all staff in line with the policy.
Copyright © Press Association 2011