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Dateline: 6th May, 2005
Theatre Worker Wins Gay Sex Discrimination Case A former box office worker at Durham's Gala Theatre, Fausto Gismondi, has won an employment tribunal case against the theatre and its owners, Durham City Council, in which he claimed he was "constructively dismissed" because of bullying and harassment because of his sexual orientation. He alleged that his boss, the theatre's then-public relations officer Ed Tutty, had referred to him as the "gay boy", that he was blamed for poor ticket sales and was ignored when he came into work on a morning. Tutty admitted the use of the phrase "gay boy" but said it was "office banter" and not in any way homophobic. Earlier Tutty was disciplined by the council for using a phrase which it described as "inappropriate": the council had accepted that the use of the phrase was, in its context, homophobic. Gayle Jackson, Tutty's assistant at the time, said she felt bad about the way Mr Gismondi was treated. "Ed used to whisper 'the gay boy' to me and I took it to be malicious," she told the court. "If Fausto was heterosexual, I do not believe Ed would have treated him in the manner he did." Tutty told the Newcastle Evening Chronicle, “I'm shocked it ever got so far. All my working life, no-one has ever said anything like this about me. This has been hanging over me for more than a year now and it's not a nice situation to have to deal with. "My management style has always been assertive. Yes, I put pressure on him but I put pressure on everybody. I had been told by my bosses that we had three months to improve the business." However both Tutty and the council were found to be in breach of the sexual orientation regulations which came into force at the end of 2003 and now a further hearing to determine the level of damages will take place. The tribunal also said that the Council's failure to take steps against the manager "ought to cause them considerable shame". Gismondi's solicitor, Jo White, said, "This is an important decision because it highlights the responsibilities employers have under the sexual orientation regulations. Gay men and women have the same rights to be treated equally and with respect as anyone else at work." Local BECTU organiser Andy Egan added, "Every worker is entitled to go about their working lives without fear of discrimination or victimisation. The treatment meted out to our member was appalling, and we are glad to have been able to seek redress for him. We hope employers try will get the message that they cannot stand by and allow bullying and harassment of gay workers; the trade unions will take action." Gismondi is now working at the Sunderland Empire as group sales manager. Please note that all three Archive indices are very long and will therefore take some time to download.
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