Help please. About to out myself and getting cold feet...

[mumto3boysHE]

Hi everyone
Asking for a little guidance from all the wise owls in here if you would be so kind.

I'm doing a level 7 leadership course through work. I'm enjoying it but it's tough for me, last time I studied was my O-levels and I'm almost 60... So I'm struggling with the language and the research, it's a steep learning curve, no mistake.

I've also struggled 'waffling' to get my word count up. I'm used to clear, concise writing in my work so expanding is difficult for me. Until now...

My current assignment is DEI/EDI in the workplace and how important it is.

Oh, I have so much to say! I'm going from the angle of protected characteristic of sex, namely female, and what happens when things go bad. How hard things have been with toilets, changing rooms, unable to speak up etc. I'm writing about training schemes from external lobby groups, NHS Fife, Darlington nurses, SC ruling, I have so much to say. But,

I've had a bit of a panic about putting all this down on paper and emailing it to my coach and then submitting it. I've realised I'm worried about outing myself as gender critical and what the repercussions could be.

Why am I being such a coward about this? I'm used to lurking on this board and I've learnt so much about this topic and I now donate to Sex Matters and subscribe to podcasts and donate to various crowd funders for employment tribunals.

I just feel a bit of a coward now. I've finally got something to say and I'm too scared to bloody say it!

Help! Can someone give me some courage please?

I’d write an opening section inviting the reader into the very real world of the public sector equality duty to balance rights, the issue of conflicting rights, how the Supreme Court dealt with it and that judgement being a legal reality.

And then ask the reader to join you for a look at what this means legally from the point of view of the protected characteristic of sex (female). (Give tribunal examples, eg Darlington nurses.)

Then write your piece.

Conclude with ‘there’s no getting away from it’ and suggest that your conclusion helps to foster good relations across protected characteristics by addressing the legal landscape fairly and accurately.

I hear you, OP.

I was reviewing a doctor's report and she had cited a study, paraphrasing that "gender was a known risk factor due condition X".

Of course, she meant sex.

Normally I pick my battles at work, but this was downright incorrect. So I emailed her asking her to use the exact words in the study.

Because I was too cowardly to say it outright.

Solidarity.

I don’t think it’s cowardly at all - I think it’s sensible.

We should all be very precisely quoting from studies and legal rulings to be accurate and yes, to protect ourselves. And why not ask others like doctors and Judge Kemp to do the same?

I would not focus on the one characteristic that is most important to us on here.

I would go through each one, in the order set out in the EQHR Act, give quick overview, how you think it benefits the service/ staff bla bla bla, and just ensure that you insert biological sex where necessary. Does not require a political tome no matter how tempting.

Congratulations on continuing to progress in your career, OP, making a very practical point against ageism.

I admire your wish to speak up for women’s rights too. But I would be very careful of how I presented it, given the level of obeisance to gender ideology in many fields, particularly in EDI/DEI.

I’d focus on how to comply with the law, as made perfectly clear by last year’s Supreme Court judgement. Consider the legal and financial implications of failing to comply with the law. Explore ways of helping employees cope with conflicts, where people believe they have rights the don’t actually have.

One stylistic point: I wouldn’t waffle to increase your word count. Sounds as if you’ve done enough research to fill it with relevant info and references.

Very best of luck to you.

@mumto3boysHE In your shoes, I'd try asking ChatGPT to write it (and pay for a month's 'premium' AI model - you can cancel anytime). Also note, ChatGPT works best when you input very detailed data, and precise instructions for what you want to achieve.

I’d very much advise against this.

Why?

Because it's cheating and if discovered she'll get kicked out? Because she won't actually learn anything? Because it's dishonest?

Because employers take a very dim view of employees who cheat on courses that they're paying for.

I interpreted as pp running it through to, for want of a better word , highlight and neutralise any political overtones.

It obviously cannot be used for anything else.

Scrap that, I've re-read.

I agree with previous posters, OP - congrats on getting to this place, and good luck taking it to the next level!

I think you should use a tone/style of writing about the sex/gender/equality thing as if it didn't matter so much to you, you are only motivated by a commitment to high-quality, responsible, accurate DEI. Obviously
So saying that it is a difficult area for organisations to deal with, especially after the Supreme Court ruling, and any DEI advice must be careful not to place organisations in a potentially illegal situation blah blah blah.

So keep your own opinions and emotions out of it, but don't give any room to the 'it's all too complicated' or 'the Supreme Court got it wrong so if we wait long enough anybody can use any toilet they want'.

If I may make one suggestion though: please make sure that disability is given due consideration - disabled people's needs and rights have tended to get crowded out by all the pronouns and gender-neutral spaces and stuff, 🙄to the extent that toilets intended for disabled people are being handed over to transwomen like consolation prizes for not being allowed use the women's😡

But don't write like that!! That's exactly the tone you shouldn't use, that's just me and my annoyance about disabled spaces being appropriated

Careful and accurate referencing is your friend: make sure every point you make which is GCish has a reference to an authoritative source.

Please come back and let us know how you're getting on!

Agree with what pp have said. Another useful case is that of Lizzie Pitt which can help you reference discussion around how the rights of lesbians are marginalised in this debate.
https://www.gov.uk/employment-tribunal-decisions/ms-e-pitt-v-cambridgeshire-county-council-3311160-slash-2023

Congratulations on getting on the course @mumto3boysHEI imagine you have a reading list (assume this is through a university or a professional body since it’s L7). Make sure you reference stuff from the reading list. You can also refer to the gender pay gap, the glass ceiling and the concentration of women in a small number of (often low paid) occupations. These will help you focus on women’s stuff outside trans issues as well as with trans issues. If you have a halfway decent tutor (I’m not ruling out the possibility of an insane ideologue here) they should mark your assignment on its merits and on whether it answers the question set. Good luck