«Breaking News» Prison officer, 40, was forced to carry pink bag to work and was called 'vermin' by colleagues

Prison Boss Vicki Laithwaite (pictured) threatened Mr Plaistow after he complained about the abuse directed at him 

A bisexual prison officer who was called a 'p**f' by his colleagues and forced to carry a pink bag to work has won his unfair dismissal case.

Ben Plaistow, 40, was hired as a prison officer at HMP Woodhill in 2014 and was fired two years later after he was accused of gross misconduct.

But today a tribunal found he'd actually been dismissed because of his complaints about the vile abuse he suffered after he told boss Vicki Laithwaite he was bisexual. 

Cambridge employment tribunal judge Michael Ord heard Mr Plaistow was subjected to months of abuse from other prison officers and senior staff at the jail in Milton Keynes.

Mr Plaistow was regularly called 'gay', 'p**f' and later 'vermin' by his colleagues, in addition to several physical incidents and vandalism.

The tribunal heard that from the start of his time at Woodhill, Mr Plaistow was asked whether he was gay by other prison officers - based on his haircut and his tidy uniform.

Prison officer Robert Puttock insisted it was just 'good natured banter' and that Mr Plaistow 'joined in and gave as good as he got'.

Puttock also denied calling him 'gay' or 'p**f'. But Judge Ord said Puttock gave no examples of Mr Plaistow responding.

Mr Plaistow would style his hair differently at work and also stopped having his eyelashes tinted to avoid the jibes.

On 22 September 2014, Mr Plaistow's supervisor, custodial manager Victoria Laithwaite asked whether he was gay during his formal induction at the prison in Milton Keynes.

Nicola Braganza, representing Mr Plaistow, said the harassment 'stepped up a notch' after the officer told Laithwaite he was bisexual.

Ms Braganza said officers at the prison coloured in Mr Plaistow's bag with pink permanent marker as well as his name badge.

Laithwaite (pictured) told Mr Plaistow officers would file false reports about him to ensure that he lost his job 

Several prison officers claimed that colouring in the bags was normal to distinguish the identical bags from each other.

Judge Ord found no evidence of this and said: 'The colouring of the claimant's bag and the refusal to replace it, meaning that he had to carry a pink coloured bag to and at work on a daily basis were acts of harassment designed to create a humiliating or offensive environment.'

Ms Laithwaite refused to replace his vandalised prison bag despite being asked multiple times, the tribunal heard.

Mr Plaistow attempted to complain about this abuse, Laithwaite told him other officers would turn in false reports to ensure he lost his job. 

She denied the conversation took place.

On a separate occasion, Mr Plaistow's work bag was coloured in again and a pink 'fairy cake' was smeared across the inside of the bag.

He then complained about the treatment in a letter to his MP, Andrea Leadsom, and made formal complaints within the prison service.

'I'm not an officer anymore. I'm a little p**f. I've had water thrown over me. My personal possessions and some of my uniform have been coloured pink,' he wrote.

His colleagues were made aware of both this letter and the complaints and some began to refer to him as 'vermin'.

During a morning briefing in June 2015 an unnamed prison officer slapped him with the back of his hand in front of Laithwaite and other officers.

'I felt as if all my dignity had been taken away,' he said. In December 2015, Mr Plaistow was accused of using unnecessary force on a prisoner while breaking up a fight.

He was then suspended and dismissed as a result of this incident in 2016.

But the tribunal heard that Mr Plaistow did not use unnecessary force, backed up by CCTV footage and witness testimony from the prisoner himself, who acknowledged he was at fault.

The tribunal agreed that he had been dismissed because of his complaints, rather than any alleged misconduct.

Judge Ord said: 'From the earliest days at HMP Woodhill he was subjected to verbal (and later physical) abuse based upon his sexual orientation. He was unfairly dismissed and his dismissal was an act of victimisation.'

 

Link hienalouca.com

https://hienalouca.com/2019/02/15/prison-officer-40-was-forced-to-carry-pink-bag-to-work-and-was-called-vermin-by-colleagues/
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Prison Boss Vicki Laithwaite (pictured) threatened Mr Plaistow after he complained about the abuse directed at him 

A bisexual prison officer who was called a ‘p**f’ by his colleagues and forced to carry a pink bag to work has won his unfair dismissal case.
Ben Plaistow, 40, ...

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