An employment tribunal has ruled that describing someone as "coloured" is not racist, even though the term may cause offence to people of colour. The judge concluded that while the word is "generally considered to be old fashioned" and potentially "offensive", using it as a "one-off comment" to simply describe someone from an ethnic minority background does not amount to racism or racial harassment. The ruling matters because it draws a legal distinction between language that is outdated or offensive and conduct that legally constitutes discrimination.

The case was brought by Amy Reeves, a mixed-heritage commercial administrator of British and Jamaican heritage who worked for construction and housing firm Kier Ltd in Sheffield from November 2024. She said a colleague described two people as "coloured" in the office, and reported other remarks, including a tenant being called a "little old black lady" on her first day. She claimed discrimination and racial harassment after nothing was done, but the tribunal found the colleague did not intend the term to be offensive, that she had not been harassed, and that it was not "reasonable" for her to be upset by the word.