An employment solicitor is suing the National Union of Teachers (NUT) for sexual discrimination, the Gazette has learned.

Sussex-based Ruth Selo has accused the NUT of withdrawing a verbal and written job offer on grounds that are discriminatory. The NUT denies the accusation and is defending the case.


Ms Selo said she had been offered the position of regional solicitor with the union, but subsequently received a letter from NUT general secretary Steve Sinnott.


He wrote that none of the referees contacted by the union 'was able to comment on (her) abilities in relation to the person specification for the post applied for'. As the job offer was conditional on satisfactory references, he said the union was within its rights to withdraw it.


Ms Selo claimed that it is impossible for individual referees to provide the detail required by the union. She said her career spans 30 years and, like many women, has been disrupted by domestic obligations.

She added that many more women than men have to work part-time or in jobs below their professional qualification owing to childcare and other responsibilities.





She said: 'It was therefore discriminatory of the NUT to depend exclusively upon my references from such employment, rather than seeing my career history in its totality. If they had looked at the full picture, there would have been no doubt about my suitability for the post.'



Ms Selo has now issued proceedings against the union.



She added: 'The Sexual Discrimination Act 1975, as recently amended, applies because the NUT have applied a "provision, criterion or practice" which is likely to be detrimental to a larger proportion of women than men and cannot be justified with any legitimate aim.'



Graham Clayton, senior solicitor at the NUT, said: 'We are fully confident of our position and will defend the case fully. We have reserved our position on costs.'

Jonathan Rayner