When the professional becomes personal: balancing expectations for the incoming workplace generation

March 2025 marks the annual “B Corp Month” campaign, which aims to celebrate the 10,000 certified “B Corporations” around the globe, that “use business as a force for good”. This year’s campaign highlights “Generation B” – a new generation of individuals within the workforce who are striving to “create a better future” and “drive positive change”, “inspired by the energy of the emerging generations of today”.

It is a timely reminder of the way in which the workplace – B Corp or not – is transforming at speed.  Fuelled not only by ever evolving and increasingly prevalent technologies, but also a shift in workplace demographics and dynamics; as older generations (the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Millennials) are joined by the younger “Generation Z” (those born from around 1997 to 2012), who bring with them new expectations around the world of work and an increased integration of the professional and personal. 

As part of this shift, employers are seeing a greater desire for, and valuing of, workplaces which place flexibility, equality, diversity and inclusion, sustainability and social justice front and centre. They are also seeing a concurrent increase in the expression of personal beliefs in the workplace; often deeply held, and sometimes in conflict with those of colleagues and clients; the most topical examples of which are perhaps the ongoing debate about transgender and “gender critical” rights, as well as the increased dialogue around sustainability and climate change. 

The challenge for employers here is two-fold. Firstly, to attract and retain Gen Z staff, many are having to overhaul their workplace policies, procedures and benefits, to encompass the issues which Gen Z value (in some instances, above higher salaries). Secondly, navigating and balancing the expression of differing (but equally legitimate) beliefs in the workplace, whist also protecting staff from discrimination, in a context where the boundary between many people’s professional lives and personal lives is diminishing and social and political activism is on the rise, can be difficult.

We set out below some examples of the more progressive policies and procedures that we have seen purpose driven organisations adopting in their workforces, in order to attract and retain staff. We also go on to explore the current legal position in relation to navigating the expression of beliefs in the workplace, and some key considerations for employers to bear in mind when doing so.

1. Progressive workplace policies and procedures

a) Flexible working

Following the Covid pandemic, and a shift in the generational workforce, staff are now expecting flexible and/or remote working as standard. Offering these as options opens up a greater talent pool for organisations, acts as a great recruitment tool and can help contribute towards a positive, progressive workplace culture. Nevertheless, employers do also need to be mindful of their responsibilities around ensuring fairness across the organisation, the duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled staff, and the obligation to avoid indirect discrimination; where they are allowing staff to work flexibly.

The dialogue around flexible working is increasingly focussing on the fact that many staff would prefer to work remotely for a greater portion of their working time, whilst their employers are often requiring that they return to the office more days per week than previously. The stance that an organisation takes on this needs to be reasonable, in the context of the sector in which they operate. There is also a balance to be struck for younger members of staff, for whom supervision may be more valuable and easily provided in person than remotely, and who may also not have sufficient space in their homes to enable comfortable remote working for extended periods.

There is also a conversation to be had around what, exactly, remote working means, and where it can be carried out from. For example, whilst working abroad is hugely attractive for some staff, it can be complex to enable in practice and can have drawbacks for employers. For instance, each country has its own rules about the right to work in that country, the employment law rights which will apply (including in respect of employment status), and the tax implications (both for the individual and the organisation). Employers will need to have a firm grasp on all of these issues before agreeing to allow staff to work from abroad; even for relatively short periods of time. It will be important for both staff and organisations to give these issues careful consideration, before finding an agreed way forward together.

Either way, having some flexibility around splitting working time between the office and home is undoubtedly an appealing approach for both staff and employers. The key is to have cogent, fair policies in place, which make each party’s rights and obligations clear.

b) Equality, diversity and inclusion

Staff are increasingly, and rightly, concerned about equality, diversity and inclusivity (“EDI”) within the workplace, and this is becoming a greater focus for many employers as a result. Whilst EDI policies have been a workplace staple for decades, there is no doubt that their scope is increasing, and their focus is changing.

One particular area of EDI which has received increased attention over the past few years, is that of transgender inclusivity. Increasingly, staff are demanding, and organisations are implementing, gender identity policies. These will ordinarily prohibit discrimination in any form against transgender staff, but may also detail how the organisation will support staff who are transitioning at work, set out appropriate workplace dress codes (if applicable) and/or explain how single-sex facilities (such as toilets and changing rooms) will be dealt with. However, guidance which simply allows employees to use the facilities of the gender they identify with, will be overly simplistic and may not be legally compliant. Similarly, gender identity policies that do not balance the rights of both transgender and gender critical staff, may result in inadvertent discrimination.

The best approach for organisations here is to have an open, transparent dialogue with the workforce about these issues, in a respectful way; hear what they have to say about their viewpoints; carefully consider the feedback received and options available; and reach a reasonable and proportionate decision on the way forward.  Any such decision should also be kept under regular review, and may need to be adapted as the workforce demographic changes.

Once again, having clear, adequate policies in place, which do not discriminate, will be key

c) Sustainability and climate change policies

The overlapping issues of sustainability and climate change are increasingly in the spotlight, for employers and employees alike. More and more “purpose driven” organisations are introducing sustainability and climate friendly initiatives within their businesses, and measurable performance and tangible outcomes are becoming the standard across many sectors. 

Some examples of initiatives we have seen introduced within organisations include:

• Having a sustainable commuting policy and/or flexible working, which encourages employees to walk, cycle or use public transport to reach the office and allows flexibility around working from home and/or working hours; to reduce individual and organisational carbon footprint.

• Allowing additional paid time off for environmentally friendly activities, including extra paid time off for sustainable holiday travel and paid time off to volunteer for environmentally friendly initiatives.

• Having a “Climate Programme Recognition Reward Scheme”, which rewards staff for actions that have a positive environmental impact; for example, offering staff £100 towards the cost of switching to certified green energy at home.

• Offering a more sustainable pension fund, which focusses on environmentally friendly, sustainable, ethical investment.

• Staff training on sustainability and workplace ambassadors. Training can include educating staff on the organisation’s sustainability targets and practices as well as environmental issues relevant to their roles. Workplace ambassadors can be senior staff who ensure accountability and incorporate environmental considerations into the organisation’s values.

• Formally, and publicly, acknowledging the “climate crisis”, and making a number of commitments to environmentally friendly, sustainable business practices.

• Environmentally friendly, sustainable business practices, like making the business carbon neutral, zero waste-to-landfill in the office, encouraging staff to bring hard to recycle items from home to be recycled, reducing use of single-use plastics in the business, having a “paper light” office, creating procurement procedures which encourage suppliers to work towards net zero carbon emissions by 2030.

Offering staff environmentally friendly perks and benefits, and placing sustainability front and centre in an organisation’s workplace culture is, increasingly, becoming the “norm” and something that many younger employees not only value highly, but expect as standard.

d) Time off to attend campaigns and protests

With political and social justice campaigns and activism more generally on the rise, particularly amongst younger demographics, employers are finding themselves having to navigate the question of what to do when staff ask for time off to attend campaigns and protests more frequently.

There is no stand-alone legal right to time off work to attend political or social justice campaigns or protests, though some employers do choose to allow staff such time off (whether that time off is paid or not, is at the employer’s discretion). Not least because such time off may be related to an employee’s specific belief or religion or political affiliation, which may amount to a protected characteristic in respect of which they should not be discriminated against (either directly or indirectly). Though this does of course need to be weighed up against any risks to the organisation, for example of conflicts of interest or reputational damage.

If such time off is to be allowed, it is crucial that the organisation has a policy in place, which clearly sets out the circumstances in which time off will be granted, how much notice should be given, how a request should be made, whether the employee will be paid or not, when and how much time off can be taken, any specific information required about the reasons for the time off, the fact that the employee’s conduct at any campaign, protest, march, etc. must be lawful and non-violent, and what will happen in the event that the employee is arrested, charged, convicted and/or imprisoned.

Achieving a balance between allowing staff to become involved in causes which are important to them, whilst also running the organisation effectively and minimising any conflicts of interest, reputational damage and/or other significant risks, is key here. 

2. Navigating the expression of personal beliefs in the workplace

Though the practice of having “progressive” policies in the workplace, which reflect the beliefs and values of the workforce, seems a relatively straightforward approach, in reality it can be anything but. 

Navigating personal beliefs in the workplace, particularly where they may not be universally shared or agreed with by co-workers and/or clients, can be incredibly difficult. There is a balance to be struck; between respecting individuals’ right to express their (often deeply felt) beliefs, whilst also protecting the (potentially conflicting) rights of others not to be discriminated against; which can be challenging to achieve.

The starting point is that the law protects employees from being discriminated against (either directly, indirectly, through harassment, or by victimisation) on the basis of any protected characteristic (specifically age, disability, gender reassignment, marital status, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation); under the Equality Act 2010 (“EqA”). In respect of the characteristic of “belief”, a broad range are protected under the EqA, including:

• A belief in climate change.

• Ethical veganism (in some instances, but notably not vegetarianism).

• The “gender critical” belief that sex is binary, immutable, cannot be changed, and should not be conflated with gender identity.

• The anti-Zionist belief that Zionism (the ideology that a state for Jewish people ought to be established and maintained in the territory that formerly comprised the British Mandate of Palestine) is inherently racist, imperialist, and colonial.

Issues can arise where protected beliefs and/or protected characteristics come into conflict with one another. It is imperative, in these scenarios, that employers seek to balance competing rights, and take an objectively justifiable and proportionate approach to dealing with any issues, rather than unquestioningly or automatically favouring one viewpoint over the other. Failure to do so could result in unlawful discrimination.

This was brought into sharp focus in the recent Court of Appeal decision in Higgs v Farmor’s School [2025] EWCA Civ 109, which held that a schoolteacher was discriminated against, when she was dismissed for posting gender critical views on her personal Facebook page, due to concerns of the school that employed her that people reading her posts might conclude that she was transphobic and homophobic and that this in turn may damage its reputation. The Court found that the dismissal was not a proportionate response in the circumstances, and set out some useful guidance for employers to bear in mind when navigating the expression of protected beliefs in the workplace:

• A broad range of beliefs will be protected; this is, in practice, a low threshold. Even beliefs which may be offensive or shocking to some can be protected. Disciplining someone who has expressed a protected belief, because of pressure from third parties who have taken offense, may be discriminatory.

• Both holding a belief and expressing (or manifesting) that belief are protected, unless the manifestation is (objectively) unreasonable or inappropriate.

• Any action taken in response to an objectionable or inappropriate manifestation of a protected belief must be objectively justifiable and proportionate in the circumstances.  That means that, in taking action the employer has a legitimate aim that it is seeking to protect (for example, the legal rights of others), and the action taken is a proportionate means of achieving that aim (i.e. the least punitive option possible).

• Considerations to be borne in mind when assessing proportionality will include the subject matter of the beliefs expressed, their relevance to the employer’s business, the way they are expressed, in what forum, to how many, whether they can be linked to the employer (and the extent of any reputational risk associated with this), the nature of the role of the individual involved (both their level of seniority and whether their views are likely to influence their work), whether there is evidence of the individual demonstrating concerning behaviour towards third parties, and the nature of the organisation and its clients or service users.

• Knee-jerk reactions should be avoided.  The organisation’s response should be measured, objectively justifiable and proportionate. 

• Care should be taken when contemplating action in relation social media posts on personal accounts.  Something that might be unproblematic on a private Facebook page could justify different treatment if communicated in a work setting, and visa versa. 

• Clear policies are crucial.  Employers should have cogent social media, conduct and inclusion and diversity policies in place, that fairly balance freedom of belief and expression with the rights of others and set out workplace expectations.  These should be clearly communicated to staff and regularly reviewed and updated. 

Futureproofing in this space will involve recognising that staff will have different views (in some cases, deeply held), which may be equally valid and equally deserving of respect (even if not universally agreed with).  Encouraging a workplace culture where staff can respectfully and constructively discuss differing beliefs, or agree to disagree if necessary, will be key.

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The material in this article is provided for guidance and general information only and is not intended to constitute legal or other professional advice upon which you should rely. In particular, the information should not be used as a substitute for a full and proper consultation with a suitably qualified professional. Please do contact the Bates Wells team if you require further information.