The Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) enabled a culture of sexual harassment and bullying to take place through ‘wilful blindness, power hoarding and poor practices’, an independent inquiry has concluded.
The inquiry, led by Baroness Helena Kennedy KC, found that staff, union reps and members of the executive committee endured inappropriate and sexual touching, sexual assault, coercive and manipulative behaviour, violent and disrespectful language, humiliation and denigration.
Her report said that a lack of common sense or oversight “infiltrated” senior decision-making at the TSSA. Power was concentrated among a small group, with little or no scrutiny.
She found that the transport union’s culture was “stuck… in a morass of staff upset and grievance” on matters relating to sexual harassment, assault, bullying, silencing and marginalising employees. The union’s leaders claimed to have little or no knowledge of this.
More than 50 individuals shared their experiences of the organisation, describing its culture as: toxic, dysfunctional, racist, homophobic, misogynistic, and vindictive.
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Only two people said something positive about its culture. One of these individuals, Kennedy claimed, was a senior member of staff who was the subject of fear and distrust.
Kennedy’s report says: “One of the more distressing aspects of this inquiry was how little the TSSA leadership seems to have moved with the times.
“Attitudes to women, knowledge and insight into organisation power dynamics, and gender, sex and race relations, all appear to be entrenched in a historic moment.
“Movements such as MeToo and the hashtag #Ibelieveher have been around for some time now. Even before their inception, it would have been alarming for an organisation that stands for rights and justice not to be able to demonstrate an understanding of the basic dynamics of power and how it is used and misused in organisation contexts.”
One employee said: “Male body parts are invariably used, by a significant number of men, to describe assertiveness, courage and weakness. For example, I have heard frequently: ‘they need to grow a pair/nutless/left holding your dick in your hand/man up’. The frequent use of male genitalia to imply weakness and strength is excluding, gross and macho. I think it adds up to making the workplace an uncomfortable, hostile place for women at times and therefore not feel like a safe place to work.”
The inquiry also heard that women felt they could not work late in the office if certain staff members were still there, or they worried about some colleagues returning to the workplace after drinking. Some women had to consider how they travelled to meetings and events, or whether they stayed overnight, because they did not want to travel with colleagues they found intimidating.
Concerns ignored
Kennedy said the TSSA’s scepticism and disbelief of women was “even more dangerous” when combined with governance failings, and where members of the executive committee and leadership team turned a blind eye to allegations of harassment, assault and problem drinking during working hours.
One staff member said: “I think people are put off having witnessed how people are treated when they do raise concerns. I personally do not have much confidence that if I raised concerns that it would be dealt with adequately and appropriately. I would be concerned that it would turn the spotlight on me, and I would be the one who was criticised for either
raising the issue or it would be implied that it was only a problem for me, or even that I was the problem.”
Kennedy said: “In the TSSA, I found a form of management that I understood to be controlling, hierarchical and, as evidenced to me by many individuals, bullying. What has been described to me by some managers as ‘robust’ or ‘assertive’ is being experienced by many staff as harassing, humiliating, degrading and dispiriting.
What has been described to me by some managers as ‘robust’ or ‘assertive’ is being experienced by many staff as harassing, humiliating, degrading and dispiriting.” – Baroness Kennedy KC
“The leadership seem to see staff as a problem. I have heard that people in the organisation have been described by senior
staff as ‘useless c**ts.’ I have heard people who had tried to raise concerns as being described as ‘whingers,’ ‘disloyal’ or ‘damaging’ to the trade union movement’.”
The union’s former general secretary, Manuel Cortes, left the organisation while the investigation was going. The inquiry heard that he sometimes became “disinhibited” by alcohol and then behaved inappropriately towards women, but Kennedy said it would be “a mistake to think that any matters relating to sexual harassment, discrimination and bullying are resolved by his departure”.
Kennedy said that none of the internal leadership team should remain in post, and a “crisis administration” should be appointed.
Further recommendations for the TSSA included:
- paying serious attention to the organisation’s values, culture and rebuilding trust between leadership and staff
- prioritising psychological and physical safety, particularly for women, people of colour and minority groups
- adding a qualified HR leader to the senior management team, who should develop annual training plans that cover safe workplaces and preventing sexual harassment
- training all executive committee members in governance.
TSSA’s response
The TSSA executive committee said it accepted the report and its recommendations. It said in a statement: “As a union, TSSA fights for equality, fairness, and social justice for all, regularly winning on equality issues for our members. But it is clear from this report that our union has not followed the values we aspire to for our members.
“We recognise that change is needed and that action must be taken to urgently address failings. TSSA is committed to implementing widespread change. We are seeking support from the GMB union and we hope to learn from their experience in tackling institutional issues, addressing head-on the challenges and driving through cultural and institutional change.
“The union’s executive committee will prioritise the work needed arising from the Kennedy Report. The union will take time to thoroughly understand the report and its recommendations, and an action plan will be formulated and implemented. With immediate effect, the president and treasurer have stood down and an interim president and interim treasurer have been appointed.”
TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said the union body has asked the TSSA to meet to discuss next steps.
“Sexual harassment and bullying have no place in the trade union movement or any workplace,” he said. “This report must lead to genuine culture change. The union movement must be a place where women feel safe and supported.
“Tackling and preventing sexual harassment in our movement and in every workplace is a priority for the TUC and our member trade unions. The TUC will continue and step up our dedicated programme of training union officers and senior leaders to prevent sexual harassment.”
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In October an inquiry into the Royal College of Nursing by Bruce Karr KC revealed a bullying, misogynistic and sexual culture, and the union’s leadership team “riddled with division, dysfunction and distrust”.
