Roz Adams, the counsellor who lost her job at Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre for her gender-critical views, has been awarded nearly £69,000 – nearly double the amount anticipated.
Roz Adams won her case against Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre (ERCC) in Scotland in May 2024, when a tribunal found she had been constructively dismissed because of her gender-critical views.
The payout follows what the judge said was a “heresy hunt” against her that led to her suffering discrimination and harassment.
Now the centre must also issue a public apology on its website and refer sexual assault victims to Ms Adams’ new place of work, women’s refuge Beira’s Place.
Gender-critical views
Balance and belief: how should HR manage the gender-critical debate?
Adams, who worked for the ERCC from 2021 to 2023, believed that users of the centre should be able to decide who they receive help from based on gender and that sex is binary.
She told the tribunal that she had spoken to colleagues after a rape victim had asked whether her counsellor would be a man or woman because she would feel uncomfortable talking to a man.
Her managers insisted that it was contrary to the centre’s policy to disclose the sex of any worker to a service user, even though they could be told that no men were on its staff or volunteer team.
Adams’ views clashed with those of the centre’s chief executive Mridul Wadhwa, a trans woman who has since stepped down from her role.
She was accused of being transphobic after consulting with a non-binary colleague (AB) on how to reassure a client that they were not a man. An internal investigation was later launched, which the tribunal said had been deeply flawed.
In an earlier letter, ERCC apologised “for the discrimination you faced while working at ERCC and for the stressful process you have been through” but Adams rejected the apology because of the language used and the fact that it didn’t publicly name her. The tribunal agreed that the apology was “defective”.
Now the centre is “striving to improve”, having already taken action on recommendations outlined in a recent report.
At the time of the judgment, Adams described the win as “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” and said “it validates and makes worthwhile three years of struggle”.
The ERCC has been contacted for comment.
Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance
Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday
HR jobs in the charity sector on Personnel Today
Browse more HR jobs in the not for profit /charity sector
