Muslim healthcare worker sued NHS for racism after being told she had to wear uniform instead of Islamic dress

A Muslim healthcare worker sued the NHS for racism because she did not ‘get her own way’ and was told she had to wear uniform instead of an Islamic dress.

Naziya Ayub was told that her Islamic dress, which covered her from the neck down to the ankle, was a health and safety risk.

But an employment tribunal heard the British Pakistani refused alternative clothing options – such as trousers – and told her boss: ‘I will not be negotiating on what I wear to work.’

Her complaints of religious discrimination and harassment were all dismissed.

A tribunal judgment said: ‘In answer to direct questions from the Tribunal, she confirmed that trousers of any sort would not be considered modest even if the trousers were baggy or loose fitting. For her, a long skirt or dress was a requirement.’

The employment tribunal, held in Manchester, heard that Miss Ayub worked as a healthcare assistant for Northern Care Alliance (NCA) NHS Foundation Trust from March 2021.

She provided care to children who required long-term ventilation.

It heard that she ‘dresses modestly’ as part of her faith as a Muslim, which means wearing a headscarf and an Islamic dress, a jilbab.

This dress covers the body from the neck down to the ankle and ‘disguises the shape or outline of the wearer’s figure’.

In May 2023, Miss Ayub had a meeting with her line manager Wendy Bacon in which Ms Bacon pointed out she was wearing a long black dress under her work tunic instead of her uniform trousers.

The tribunal heard Miss Ayub asked Ms Bacon if she ‘had a problem with Muslim dress’.

The manager said she had no problem at all with it but she had a duty to point out if she was not in the right uniform.

The following month, Ms Bacon emailed all the team members reminding them of the Trust’s workwear policy.

Following another meeting with Ms Bacon, Miss Ayub raised concerns that she was being discriminated against because of her modest clothing choices.

In July 2023, she met with the assistant director of nursing services Lisa Fern and told her she ‘didn’t want her body shape/outline to be visible’ and said she ‘feels bullied’.

Ms Fern contacted a health and safety adviser about the uniform problem the following month, who warned that Miss Ayub’s workwear could pose potential ‘slip/trip/fall’ hazards when moving or handling a patient or equipment or when negotiating stairs.

In a meeting with Ms Fern in September 2023, Miss Ayub alleged that Ms Bacon was discriminating against her because of her uniform and rejected an offer of mediation aimed at improving the pair’s relationship.

She submitted a grievance saying ‘There is no alternative to an Islamic dress’.

At an investigation meeting, Miss Ayub said Ms Bacon ‘has no respect for religion’.

Later in the year, she emailed Ms Fern to say she would not wear the summer dress and scrub pants uniform because she was not comfortable with the combination.

She said: ‘I will not change my identity to please others who show signs of racism and religious discrimination.’

She said her clothing would be assessed as posing a ‘low’ health and safety risk, adding: ‘I will not be negotiating on what I wear to work, and I’m not having any more discussions about this.’

Ms Fern then sent a formal letter to Miss Ayub about her compliance with the workwear policy, and said that if she did not comply with the workwear policy by the end of November that year, that could constitute misconduct.

Miss Ayub went on sick leave on November 15 because of stress and anxiety.

The investigation into her complaints recommended that there be mediation between Miss Ayub and Ms Bacon, as well as with two staff members who the tribunal heard had been caught on camera discussing the uniform policy at a patient’s home, when one of them said Miss Ayub used the ‘race card’.

Miss Ayub was told there was no case to answer regarding her grievances against her colleagues, and an appeal against that decision was dismissed.

Miss Ayub indicated that she wanted to be redeployed elsewhere, and after turning down the option of mediation once again, was added to the redeployment register in July.

She joined a teaching agency and handed in her resignation the same month.

On the uniform issue, Employment Judge Rebecca Eeley found that Miss Ayub’s dress ‘presented a significant health and safety risk’ and she would only be satisfied if the Trust ‘essentially gave up on insisting on workwear which carried only an acceptable level of health and safety risk in the workplace’.

The judge said: ‘(Miss Ayub)’s real concern was that she was not being given her own way in relation to the uniform requirements.

‘She was angry that she was not being allowed to wear the Islamic dress and that her practice had been challenged by management.’

The judge said she was ‘not persuaded’ that Miss Ayub ‘genuinely and subjectively found the comments on the recording created an intimidating hostile, degrading, humiliating (etc) environment for her’, and said her ‘outrage appeared somewhat artificial’.

Other claims she made were also dismissed.

Miss Ayub today said the tribunal ruling was ‘unfair’ and she had lodged an appeal.

Speaking at her terraced home in Oldham, Greater Manchester, she added: ‘They said my style of dress was a health and safety risk but there was no evidence to back that up.

‘When I started I was told that there would not be a problem as long as the dress was above my ankles and I rolled up my sleeves when doing anything clinical.

‘I had worked there for two and a half years without any problem whatsoever and they were fine about me wearing Islamic dress.

‘What they wanted me to wear were like leggings and I told them that I would not wear that at home, so why should I wear it at work?

‘ I am not using my religion as an excuse – I just wanted justice. This is not about religion, it is about equality and diversity for everyone, whatever their religion.’

Ms Ayub said she now has a new job.

The NCA trust runs four hospitals in Greater Manchester: Salford Royal, the Royal Oldham, Rochdale Infirmary and Fairfield General in Bury.