Inigo Wilson wrote an entry that accuses the current Labour
administration of using language that obscures its true political
motives. Under the heading "The Lefty Lexicon", Wilson provided a
set of terms and their usage or meaning.
He defined Islamophobe as: "Anyone who objects to having their
transport blown up on the way to work." Palestinians were defined
as: "archetype 'victims' no matter how many teenagers they murder
in bars and fast food outlets. Never responsible for anything they
do – or done in their name – because of 'root causes' or
‘legitimate grievances’."
After receiving complaints, Orange suspended Wilson. A spokesman
told The Register: "All employees are issued with guidelines as to
what constitutes behaviour that brings the company into disrepute.
We need to investigate now to determine whether or not Mr Wilson
has breached those guidelines."
Robyn McIlroy, an employment law specialist with Pinsent Masons,
the law firm behind OUT-LAW.COM, said the case raises the
interesting and increasingly relevant point of whether an
employee's conduct in his own time can affect his employer's
reputation.
"As a general rule, conduct committed outside employment can
potentially justify disciplinary action depending often on the
nature of the employee's job and the potential damage to the
employer's reputation," she said. "But many factors will be
relevant, including the terms of an employee's contract and any
applicable policy."
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