Sex Equality and Equity Network - Gender crit network for civil servants.

[fromorbit]

Important new initiative for government workers. This is where a huge fight back is going to happen in behind the scenes government, in memos and meetings. If we don't win in the civil service, it doesn't matter how many demos or cases we win, how many twitter threads we write, sooner or later sex differences will be erased. If you work in government/public sector get involved asp.

seen-network.uk/

"We are happy to announce the launch of our new UK cross-government staff network, the Sex Equality and Equity Network.
SEEN is a staff network committed to promoting and supporting sex equality and equity between women and men in our workplaces, and helping all staff to thrive at work and fulfil their potential. The focus of our network is on challenging sex discrimination and upholding rights and protections that relate to sex (including the protections provided to those with the protected characteristics of sex, pregnancy and maternity and sexual orientation, as set out in the Equality Act 2010). We recognise that to achieve this and ensure sex equality and equity sometimes requires treating women and men differently, according to our different rights and needs.

We are also committed to the protected belief (covered by the protected characteristic of religion and belief in the Equality Act 2010) that biological sex is binary and immutable, that biological sex matters for both women and men in our everyday lives, including for our rights and needs in the workplace, and that biological sex must not be conflated with, or replaced by, the concepts of gender or gender identity."

Be good to understand what would encourage people to join. For me, it would be seeing confirmation that this is a confirmed network and some advertising of it. I'd join in an instant then.

Your D&I policy doesn’t reflect the law and that is a legal risk for your employer. My previous employer did that and I pointed it out in writing with a link to the Equality Act, expressing that they remained at risk so long as there was an uncorrected error in their policy wording, which said it quoted the Equality Act but didn’t actually match the protected characteristics of the Equality Act. They obviously can’t just make the law up however some expensive campaigning ‘trainer’ has misled them. I just said politely that it was a risk to have legal inaccuracies in our company material. They changed it back with no apology or admission of error but at least it’s accurate now. Hopefully they’ve stopped booking that ‘trainer’..

It certainly is legit, but appreciate that difficult to trust until you see it through official channels/on the official list.

Another civil servant here. I’ll certainly be looking to joining when I log in at work on Monday

Oops, looking to join, that should read

I'm relatively new to the CS so not sure what official looks like tbh.

@TumbleFryer I think I used to work in the same department as you. I was a member of the women’s network and left once it became GEN. I’m now in a different department but have been undergoing intensive training so haven’t had a chance to really look in to the networks. I will next week though, including this one.

This is the official list (last updated in June)

www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-staff-networks/civil-service-networks

These are civil service wide, cabinet office approved networks, and are distinct from departmental networks.

The SEEN network is Cabinet Office approved and as official as it gets. The launch was in late October hence not on the list.

I challenged the listing of 'gender' as a PC in the HR guidance at my Department and it was changed, although nobody notified me or responded to my email about it other than an acknowledgement of receipt. So worth keeping an eye on policies if you have raised this issue - they may be quietly changed in the background.

Thanks, that’s clear. I hope LA workers will follow your lead.

I challenged the listing of 'gender' as a PC in the HR guidance at my Department and it was changed, although nobody notified me or responded to my email about it other than an acknowledgement of receipt. So worth keeping an eye on policies if you have raised this issue - they may be quietly changed in the background

Interesting - I’ll take a look. Thanks :)

I challenged my lot about saying gender rather than sex when quoting the Equality Act and was told it was more usual these days to use the word gender, as it was more up to date. I asked if the EA had been updated as I'd just done the mandatory induction training and it was still showing at from 2010, and surely we couldn't change the wording of an Act of Parliament. The trainer said he'd check and get back to me but never did.

Lots of people put links in the chat about how sex is scientifically proven not to be binary, how non-binary people are now recognised in law, all the usual guff we see on here like links to Penis News etc. it was quite the bombardment. So I'm very glad to see this network but my word they have their work cut out!

I think all it will take is for people to realise they are in the majority in thinking like this, and the vocal minority are just that - a few people making a lot of noise. I am really hopeful for very significant change.

Saying that there are only two sexes has forced a lecturer in the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard to go on leave: whyevolutionistrue.com/2022/11/11/the-cancellation-of-carole-hooven/

I wonder if we're the same Department, or if this is just the fashionable name change they're all doing? Our GEN seemed to immediately acquire a bloke on their steering committee, and booked the same 'inspiring dad' speaker twice. 🙃

Heaven forbid we retain a women's network which is actually about women.

Wow, that means WG is actually fairly good as we still have a Women's Network. If any of you work for WG, I would encourage you to join the network and the associated book club. The non fiction club has read/discussed a lot of good feminist reads like Trans and Authority Gap.

archive.ph/2022.11.12-190909/www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2022/11/12/civil-servants-set-employee-forum-defend-binary-biological-sex/

We made the Telegraph!

This is great!!!!

The Telegraph appear to have lifted the HMRC staff member quote from here.

That occurred to me, too, Rum!

Here it is...

That happened recently in DCMS too

I’m DCMS. I see you are too @aseriesofstillimages.

We were strongly urged to attend trans awareness training a few months ago which essentially told us a lot of untruths about biology.

I should have left when it became the gender equality network too. Maybe that’s the first thing I’ll do when I log in on Monday! They held a consultation about the name change but I was obviously in the minority who pointed out that women have a very specific lived experience and very specific challenges that justify them having their own network.

It is a great model. Maybe the NHS employees will set up something similar.

I do hope so