The Catholic Union has launched a major new survey on people’s experiences and attitudes towards faith in the workplace.

The survey has been launched in response to a new inquiry into human rights at work from the UK Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights.

Part of the inquiry is considering freedom of thought, conscience and religion, and freedom of expression in the workplace. It includes questions on whether our law strikes the right balance between employee rights to freedom of religion or belief and the rights of employers.

The Catholic Union will use the responses to the survey as the basis for its written evidence to the Committee’s inquiry. The call for evidence closes on 24 March 2023.

Additionally, the Catholic Union is encouraging those with a particular interest or expertise to submit evidence directly to the Committee, which is made up of a cross-party group of MPs and peers. The Committee is expected to report and make recommendations to the UK Government later this year.

The inquiry comes as the Government considers giving Ministers the power to remove or amend retained EU law, including in respect of workers’ rights.

Nigel Parker, Director of the Catholic Union, comments: “We are fortunate enough to live in a country where human rights, such as freedom of conscience and religious freedom, are enshrined in law. However, it appears that despite the protections we enjoy for religious freedom, a number of people feel that there are increasing difficulties about being a faithful and open Catholic in the workplace. We would like to gather evidence about what is happening on the ground in order to present the Committee with a clearer picture of these problems in practice. I’m pleased that the Committee has included religious freedom as part of this inquiry. This is an important subject and the Catholic Union will do all we can to help the Committee to form a true picture.”