Sandie Peggie, the Fife nurse who was suspended after complaining about sharing a female changing room with a transgender doctor, has confirmed she will appeal against what her solicitor describes as a “hugely problematic” employment tribunal ruling.
On Monday, the tribunal found that Peggie, a nurse for over 30 years, had been harassed by NHS Fife when expected to share the changing room with Dr Beth Upton. However, her claims of victimisation and discrimination under the Equality Act 2010 were dismissed, as was her claim against Dr Upton, whose evidence was deemed “more reliable and materially more cohesive”.
Speaking to supporters in Dundee, Peggie said she would “not be giving up the fight any time soon”. She is pursuing four cases in total, including actions against NHS Fife’s management, senior medical staff, and the Royal College of Nursing, which she claims failed to support her during her suspension – a claim the union denies.
Questions have emerged about misquotations in the ruling. On Thursday, the tribunal issued a “certificate of correction” for “clerical mistake(s), error(s) or omission(s)”, including a reference to the Maya Forstater case that Forstater said was “completely made up”. Forstater, who heads Sex Matters, noted at least three other instances where quotes “don’t reflect the case law”, undermining confidence in the legal process.
Peggie’s solicitor, Margaret Gribbon, said the judgment “places responsibility on female employees to raise complaints if they feel uncomfortable about sharing single-sex spaces with men”, ignoring that Peggie was suspended and falsely accused of patient care concerns. She added that employers are now forced to make decisions based on transgender employees’ physical appearance and intrusive questions.
Peggie stated: “I am not a campaigner and had never heard of the phrase ‘gender-critical’ when I first raised complaints… I just knew instinctively that it wasn’t right that women were expected to undress in front of men in private spaces.”
