A former council worker who was sacked over his email signature has warned that people are “scared stiff” of speaking out on gender issues, as he faces a £12,000 legal bill.
Jim Orwin, 67, made the comments on GB News whilst discussing his dismissal from East Riding of Yorkshire Council, where he earned £27,000 a year.
Speaking to GB News, the ex-council worker explained: “I was nearing the end of my career. So I’m 67 now, and I’m quite embarrassed to say, I don’t know what I would have done if was 35 with a mortgage and a family to support.
“So I think it’s crucial that this is highlighted, people are scared stiff.”
Jim Orwin said that he felt “it was an invitation to self-identify”
GB News
The ICT project officer lost his position in August 2022 after refusing to remove “XY chromosome Guy/Adult Human Male” from his email signature.
He has now been forced to use his retirement savings to cover legal costs after losing an employment tribunal case.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
The situation began in April 2022 when the council’s chief executive Caroline Lacey suggested staff consider adding pronouns to their email signatures.
Staff were given options including “he/him/his”, “she/her/hers”, “they/them/their” through a drop-down menu, with a link to mypronouns.org for guidance.
He explained: “I realised it was an invitation to self-identify. So I chose to self-identify as XY chromosome guy/adult human male. I knew it would be provocative.
“I told my immediate manager what I intended to put. Then after that, I was asked to remove them, which I refused to do. I was told it was a reasonable management instruction, but my concern was that it could only be reasonable if it was legal.
East Riding of Yorkshire Council, where Orwin worked
WikICommons
“I thought it was discriminatory towards gender critical people, so I refused to remove it.”
He added: “My problem is self-identification is a danger to vulnerable people. It’s an encroachment on women’s and girls private spaces.
“The council bears quite substantial safeguarding responsibilities for children and vulnerable adults.
“As far as I know, there was no risk assessment done on this at all.”
Jim Orwin was hit with a £12k bill
GB News
The judge awarded costs after finding Orwin pursued the claim solely because he objected to gender self-identification.
Orwin will now have to use his retirement savings to cover the £12,000 legal costs.
His wife Julie, 66, said: “I feel sad for Jim. He really did like that job. He put everything into it.”