A former member of staff at Arts Council England (ACE) who claimed she was unfairly dismissed over comments she made about transphobia has won a tribunal against the organisation.
Afreena Islam-Wright, a former diversity manager, was the subject of an internal investigation at ACE in 2022 after she left comments on a staff petition opposing the approval of a £9,000 grant to LGB Alliance, a campaign group whose policy on transgender issues opposes that of the LGBT charity Stonewall.
The petition came about after staff members spoke with ACE deputy chief executive Simon Mellor at an office “drop-in session” over their concerns the council was supporting an organisation that expressed “transphobic” views relating to biological sex.
In the comments, she said: “If I came to work one day, and attended a drop-in session where staff members were openly making racist statements, and asking [ACE] what protection would be offered to them as race critical staff members—I would feel terrified.” She also expressed concerns that “gender critical staff members [were making] funding decisions”.
She wrote: “I can’t imagine what my trans and [non-binary] colleagues are feeling right now. I’m very concerned that gender critical staff members make funding decisions, and believe it is of the utmost importance that trans awareness training is delivered and also training about our public sector equality duty—it shouldn’t be taken as given that everyone comes to work with no discriminatory views.
“We can’t necessarily ‘train’ people out of being transphobic, but we can make it clear that we don’t tolerate transphobia—by not tolerating it.”
The court was told that Islam-Wright’s comments on the petition, which was shared nationally with all council employees, was the subject of a complaint to human resources from Denise Fahmy, another former ACE staff member. The council’s human resources department then requested an investigatory meeting with Islam-Wright in which the prospect of disciplinary action was raised.
Before the meeting could take place, Islam-Wright provided a doctor’s note confirming she was unable to work due to stress. While off work on sick leave, she raised a complaint under ACE’s Dignity at Work policy.
The meeting took place in August 2022 before Islam-Wright was then invited to attend an additional disciplinary hearing. She resigned before the hearing could take place, stating that her position at ACE had become untenable.
The tribunal in Manchester heard that Islam-Wright had created a “hostile environment for colleagues with different views”, and that she had “equated gender critical beliefs to racism,” which fellow staff members considered a form of harassment.
Last week, however, Judge Rhodri McDonald ruled in her favour, finding that she had been the victim of constructive dismissal. As part of his comments Rhodri said: “It seems to us clear that [Islam-Wright] had no intention to cause hurt, was motivated solely to support trans and non-binary colleagues and was genuinely unclear about the nature and extent of protection for beliefs such as gender critical views under the Equality Act 2010.”
Islam-Wright will now receive a significant pay-out from the council, the value of which will be decided later.
The petition against the LGB Alliance has also been the subject of a separate employment tribunal. Fahmy, who made the complaint against Islam-Wright, claimed she was harassed by fellow staff at the Arts Council over her beliefs relating to trans-related issues. She also won her case at Leeds Employment Tribunal and received compensation from ACE. Fahmy is now the co-founder of Freedom in the Arts, a new organisation promoting freedom of speech and expression in the UK cultural sector.
The Arts Council is a national development agency that supports creativity and culture in the UK. It is an independent charity that receives state funding from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS).
Islam-Wright also made a victimisation claim against the council, which was dismissed by the judge.
