OFFICE JOKES RESULTED IN A WOMAN CLERK BEING GIVEN

OFFICE JOKES RESULTED IN A WOMAN CLERK BEING GIVEN THE SACK

FOR RACISM BY LEFT WING COUNCIL CHIEFS, AN INDUSTRIAL TRIBUNAL WAS

TOLD TODAY (FRI).

BUT IT HAD NOT OCCURRED TO OFFICE STAFF THAT SHIRLEY SCOTT’S

WISECRACKS WERE RACIST UNTIL AN ASIAN WOMAN COMPLAINED, THE WOBURN

PLACE APPEAL PANEL HEARD.

MRS.

SCOTT WAS SACKED FROM HER #7000 A YEAR JOB AFTER

HARINGEY COUNCIL INVESTIGATED A COMPLAINT FROM WAGES CLERK VARSHA

PATEL,

OFFICE SUPERVISOR MRS JOAN SMITH SAID: ”SHE WOULD SAY

‘PAKI.

.

.

TUP’ – I THOUGHT IT WAS WEIRD BUT I DIDN’T PLACE ANY EMPHASIS

ON THE RACISM BIT UNTIL MRS PATEL ASKED IF I’D NOTICED IT.

”

MRS SMITH SAID SHE VIEWED 39 YEAR-OLD MRS SCOTT’S ‘JOKES’,

INCLUDING A BANANA SHAPED PEN WHICH SHE LEFT ON HER DESK, AS ”SILLY

AND CHILDISH”.

MRS SCOTT ”THOUGHT IT WAS A LAUGHING MATTER TO SAY PACK IT

UP OR PACK IT IN , WITH THE BEGINNING LONG AND DRAWN OUT,” SAID MRS

SMITH.

THE SUPERVISOR AGREED THAT OFFICE LIFE WOULD BECOME

INTOLERABLE IF THERE WAS NOT SOME CHILDISH BEHAVIOUR TO RELIEVE THE

MONOTONY, AND SHE ADMITTED THAT SHE ”LET THINGS LIE”, EVEN AFTER

MRS PATEL COMPLAINED.

”AT THAT TIME WE WERE HAVING A LOT OF PROBLEMS AND I DIDN’T

WANT RACIST PROBLEMS AS WELL,” SHE SAID.

MRS SCOTT, OF WHITE HART LANE, TOTTENHAM, IS ALSO ACCUSED OF

CALLING A BLACK EMPLOYEE A MONKEY AND USING THE WORD ‘NIGGER’ ON

SEVERAL OCCASIONS.

MRS SMITH SAID THAT IN THE EAST END THE PHRASE ‘TO TURN

MONKEY’ MEANS TO GET NASTY.

SHE SAID COMPLAINTS WOULD HAVE BEEN EASILY DEALT WITH IF

THERE HAD NOT BEEN OPEN HOSTILITY BETWEEN HERSELF AND MRS SCOTT IN

THE TOTTENHAM WAGES OFFICE.

BUT SHE DENIED USING MRS PATEL’S COMPLAINTS AS ”BULLETS”

AGAINST MRS SCOTT.

THE HEARING CONTINUES.

ENDS.