A WOMAN who was dismissed by a charity that supports survivors of sexual violence because she held "gender critical" beliefs has won her tribunal case.
Roz Adams was dismissed by Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre (ERCC) over her views on gender has now won her case at the Employment Tribunal.
A judge found that the centre’s chief executive, Mridul Wadhwa, was behind a “heresy hunt” against Adams because of her beliefs.
Adams had at first welcomed the centre’s trans-inclusive policies, the tribunal heard. However, in December 2020, the rape centre worker went for a walk with Maggie Chapman, Green MSP for North East Scotland, who was then the chief operating officer for ERCC.
The judgment stated: “This was the first time that [Adams] heard what she described … as the ‘mantra’ that ‘trans women are women’.
“She felt concerned that there was no real definition or clarification associated with this statement. She felt it was odd.
“Once she started work she felt it became more and more apparent that there were issues regarding the way that gender issues were dealt with in the organisation … She described things around the issue as being ‘eggshelly’.”
The panel heard that a particular issue for Adams, referred to as the claimant, was what to say to service users who wanted to be sure that they would be seen by someone who was biologically a woman.
In June 2022, she received an email from an abuse survivor, who wanted to know whether the person she was going to see was a man or a woman, and sought guidance from her superiors about how to respond.
Disciplinary proceedings against Adams then started in late June 2022, although the tribunal said it could not establish the precise chain of events that let to this.
The employment judge, Ian McFatridge, said Mridul Wadhwa, who is ERCC chief executive and a trans woman, was a key figure in an internal investigation that “should not have been launched in the first place”.
He said the review “was clearly motivated by a strong belief among senior management and some of the claimant’s colleagues that the claimant’s views were inherently hateful”.
McFatridge added: “It is clear that [Wadhwa] was involved in the process since she was the one who selected and contacted who would deal with the various stages of the disciplinary and grievance process.”
After the ruling Adams said: “With relief, I welcome the ruling of the employment tribunal.
"They unanimously found that Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre (ERCC) unlawfully discriminated against me on the grounds of my sex-realist belief and constructively unfairly dismissed me.
“This is a victory for all people who have been subjected to sexual violence who need a choice of worker, and group support on the basis of sex in order to feel safe.”
She added: “It is tragic to me that this ended in tribunal. For three years I consistently offered to enable discussion and I firmly believe that we will only find solutions that work for everyone through fearless, respectful, well-informed dialogue. I hope this ruling supports that to happen wherever it is needed.”
