Ex-firearms officer awarded £1m over ‘boys’ club sexism’

A FORMER police constable has won almost £1million in damages after she was forced to endure a sexist “boys’ club culture” in an elite firearms unit.

Rhona Malone began grievance action against Police Scotland after Keith Warhurst, her manager, said he did not want to see two female armed officers deployed together when there were sufficient male staff on duty.

He told his boss in an email, copied into Ms Malone in January 2018, that this “makes more sense from a balanceof-testosterone perspective”.

The employment tribunal was also told Mr Warhurst posted pictures of topless women to a work Whatsapp group at the Edinburgh-based armed response vehicles unit.

Ms Malone had transferred to the unit because she believed it would be a step towards her ambition of becoming a close protection officer.

However, the tribunal accepted evidence that she joined an “absolute boys club” with a “horrific” culture operating within the unit which had two female firearms officers in a team of 12.

Margaret Gribbon, Ms Malone’s lawyer, said the case had exposed an “ugly and rampant culture of sexism and misogyny” within the firearms department of Police Scotland.

Ms Malone, a mother of three, was absent from duties with stress from June 2018 until her retirement in 2020.

She won a victimisation claim against the force at a tribunal last year and agreed a £947,909.07 settlement, it was confirmed yesterday.

The chief constable, Iain Livingstone, issued an apology to her for the “serious issues” highlighted by her case. He admitted there had been a “poor response when a dedicated and promising officer raised legitimate concerns”.

After the ruling, Ms Malone said she had been put through “absolute hell” by the force. She added: “As a police officer I stood up for people’s rights, I upheld the law, and I just expected the same.”

Mr Warhurst has since been suspended from duty and reported to prosecutors over “contradictory” evidence he gave to the tribunal.