Former RAF woman wins case

A mother-of-two who complained about foul language and lewd behaviour at an RAF training course has won her sexual discrimination case against the Ministry of Defence.

Former RAF police officer Catherine Brumfitt, from Albrighton, Shropshire, complained about remarks made by a sergeant at RAF Cosford during a course to teach officers how to deal with sex attacks.

She took the Ministry of Defence and Sgt John Fitzpatrick to an employment tribunal.

She claimed she was subjected to sexual harassment and victimisation after complaining about the senior officer's comments concerning a hypothetical rape victim.

He missed no opportunity to be derogatory towards the applicant's character and performance Tribunal panel's judgment

Mrs Brumfitt claimed senior officers destroyed her career after failing to handle an inquiry into the vulgar comments correctly.

In a written judgment released on Thursday following a hearing in Birmingham, the panel described Sgt Fitzpatrick as having a "bullying attitude".

It stated that he had tried to blacken Mrs Brumfitt's character in an annual appraisal after her complaint.

Torch claim

The panel wrote: "It is not unfair to say that he missed no opportunity to be derogatory towards the applicant's character and her work performance."

Mrs Brumfitt complained about Sgt Fitzpatrick's behaviour during the training session in February 2001 when he used a torch smeared with tomato ketchup and mayonnaise as a supposed weapon of sexual assault.

In its judgment, the panel continued: "Clearly, he (Sgt Fitzpatrick) thought it funny to treat even serious sexual matters in this way and the cruder his approach, the funnier it would be.

"The truth, sadly, is that Sgt Fitzpatrick was entirely insensitive."

Remedy hearing

However, the tribunal found he had no deliberate intention to offend anyone and no perception that women might find his conduct more offensive than men.

The panel found the MoD and Sgt Fitzpatrick had victimised Mrs Brumfitt contrary to the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 when the sergeant completed her annual appraisal in February 2002.

It stated: "Sgt Fitzpatrick deliberately compiled an appraisal which owed less to a fair assessment of the applicant's true performance than it did to a desire to show the applicant in a lesser light than she had been regarded in the past."

The tribunal, which dismissed other claims made by Mrs Brumfitt, invited the parties to settle the case or return for a remedy hearing in November.