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Veganism is becoming increasingly common, not just as a personal dietary choice but as a deeply held belief that shapes many aspects of human life, from what people eat and wear to where they choose to work. As more people embrace a vegan lifestyle, a growing number of employees are asking questions about how their beliefs are recognised at work. Do vegan employees have legal protection? Can they ask for vegan options at work events? Are they allowed to challenge the use of animal products or animal testing in company practices?
The short answer: yes, in many cases they can. But as always, the reality is a little more nuanced.
This guide explores the current legal position on veganism in the workplace, what rights are protected under UK employment law, and what employers can do to support a more inclusive and ethical working environment.
The turning point for workplace rights came in 2020 when an employment tribunal held that ethical veganism qualifies as a philosophical belief under the Equality Act 2010. The case was brought by Jordi Casamitjana, who claimed he was unfairly dismissed by the League Against Cruel Sports after raising concerns about its investments in companies involved in animal testing.
The employment judge ruled that ethical veganism is more than a diet; it’s a substantial aspect of a person’s life. As such, it qualifies as a protected belief in the same way as religion or other protected characteristics like age, disability, or sexual orientation.
This landmark case means that ethical vegans in the UK are now entitled to the same protections against discrimination in the workplace as people of other philosophical or religious beliefs.
It’s important to distinguish between ethical veganism and dietary veganism. While both involve avoiding animal products, only the former is considered a protected belief under law.
To qualify for protection under the Equality Act, a belief must meet certain levels of seriousness, cogency, and importance. Ethical veganism ticks those boxes because it affects major aspects of human life, aligns with values in a democratic society, and is worthy of respect.
Under the Equality Act 2010, employers are legally obliged to prevent discrimination in the workplace on the basis of protected characteristics, this includes ethical veganism.
Here’s what that means in practice:
Vegan employees must not be treated less favourably because of their beliefs. This includes direct discrimination (e.g. being denied a promotion) and indirect discrimination (e.g. company policies that disproportionately affect vegans). Jokes, mockery or dismissive comments about veganism could also amount to harassment under the law.
Employers should be prepared to make reasonable adjustments to accommodate vegan beliefs. This could involve offering vegan food at work events, sourcing animal free alternatives to leather chairs, or ensuring uniforms include vegan friendly clothing options that don’t contain wool, silk or leather.
Employers who fail to consider such adjustments could face discrimination claims.
Vegan staff have the right to express their beliefs in a respectful way, whether that’s through conversation, email signatures, or choosing not to participate in activities that conflict with their values. For instance, they may ask not to be involved in company events where meat is the focus or question procurement practices that involve animal testing.
That said, employees must also respect the beliefs of others. The law protects against viewpoint based discrimination, not against all disagreement.
It's unlikely at least not legally. An unfair dismissal claim could arise if a vegan employee is let go because of their beliefs, or for acting on those beliefs in ways that are protected by law.
However, it’s a grey area. Context matters. If someone is dismissed for being disruptive, for example, the employment tribunal would look at whether the dismissal was due to the belief itself or such behaviour. The key question is whether the belief was the real reason for the dismissal or just part of the background.
Employers must tread carefully and document performance-related issues thoroughly to avoid falling foul of the law.
If your workplace provides healthy snacks for its employees then ensure to double check the snack selection for vegan friendly options. Traditionally vegan snacks have extended mostly to fruit and nut selections, and whilst those are great, nowadays there are a whole variety of vegan options. Vegan hampers are a really simple way to offer a mix of sweet and savoury snacks to keep your vegan employees powered up throughout the day.
'The Vegan Snack Attack' Hamper Gift Box
Throwing a corporate lunch is a great team building exercise, but often it’s quicker and easier for companies to hire a caterer. However quite commonly caterers will provide vegetarian options, and overlook vegan options unless they are specifically told otherwise.
When considering hiring a caterer double check to see if the caterer provides vegan and vegetarian options, or alternatively look for customisable catering options. Customisable options allow you to set up a platter so that employees are able to serve themselves.
That way, non-vegan foods such as cheeses can be left to one side, and vegan employees aren’t nervously picking through sandwiches hoping that there’s a suitable choice.
With more being done for dairy and gluten allergies, setting up customisable catering options also keeps free-from employees safe, too. To find out what free-from foods are, read our blog.
Communal kitchens are commonplace in most corporate offices, but they can also fill vegan employees with dread and some may avoid using them for fear of contaminated equipment.
To prevent this, and to ensure the kitchen is just as inclusive as everywhere else, there are steps that workplaces can take.
Options include:
To create a truly inclusive workplace, employees personal preferences should be respected in all aspects of their day to day work.
For vegan employees, that mindfulness could appear through:
Finally, one great way to get all your employees working inclusively is to create a team challenge based around plant-based or free-from foods.
Remarkably, research have shown that when employees follow a semi, or even full plant-based diet, they take less sick days, have lower blood pressure levels and generally show higher levels of productivity.
One way to kickstart this initiative is to host a month-long plant based challenge. Requirements could involve switching snacks in a vending machine or kitchen to vegan friendly options, tasking employees with creating vegan friendly meals or bakes after work and scheduling weekly meetings to allow employees to share their successes, challenges and results.
If you need baking ideas, we’ve got a list of the best vegan and gluten-free bakes!
It’s vitally important for all employees to feel heard and included, and it’s likely that by hosting vegan friendly events, peers will be more naturally considerate of those with different diet requirements going forward.
At The Goodness Project we deliver delicious healthy vegan snacks and fruit boxes to offices across the UK. What’s more, each one of our Goodness Project Office snack boxes is expertly designed by a nutritionist and filled with a range of snacks, from flapjacks to popcorn to nut mixes, all from leading brands.
So whether you’re a startup or one of the big boys, we want you to think about your team and how you treat them. Make sure you’re keeping them fuelled as best you can. Our boxes will provide proteins, carbohydrates and fats. Helping to keep your team fuller for longer, and reducing sugar cravings. Helping them stay productive, not hangry.
Yes. Ethical veganism has been recognised as a protected belief under the Equality Act 2010, following a landmark employment tribunal in 2020. For a belief to be protected, it must meet certain legal criteria, including being genuinely held and relating to a substantial aspect of human life. The Vegan Society provides helpful guidance on how this applies in daily life and work settings.
Employers should ensure their diversity policy covers beliefs encompassed by the Equality Act 2010, including ethical veganism. This can include offering vegan options at catered events, sourcing vegan friendly clothing for uniforms, and being mindful of animal products or animal testing in company-provided items. Creating an inclusive culture helps support both legal compliance and staff wellbeing.
You should raise your concerns with your company’s HR or employment team first. If that doesn’t resolve the issue, you may wish to seek legal advice or contact Acas. In some cases, you may have grounds to bring a discrimination claim before an employment tribunal. Make sure to document all incidents and communications that demonstrate such behaviour.
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