At an employment tribunal in Dundee, nurse Bethany Hutchison testified that the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has failed to support its members during conflicts over gender identity issues. Hutchison, alongside Jennifer Melle, criticized the RCN for not backing them when they faced disciplinary actions from their employers after objecting to using specific pronouns or sharing facilities with transgender colleagues. The tribunal also heard that Melle experienced significant distress following a warning issued by her employer for referring to a male patient who later identified as female using masculine pronouns. Both nurses accused the RCN of abandoning its members and not upholding their rights in these disputes.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-28,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
have been abandoned by their trade union which has not backed its members during their hour of need, an employment tribunal has heard.
asserted
tribunal → abandon → need
Bethany Hutchison, one of the Darlington nurses who won a landmark fight against the NHS in England, told the Sandie Peggie tribunal against the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) she had ‘become completely disillusioned’ with the union.
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she → win → union
She joined London-based nurse Jennifer Melle in hitting out at the organisation.
asserted
She → join → organisation
Ms Melle was disciplined after referring to her convicted paedophile trans patient who racially abused her using masculine pronouns rather than female ones.
asserted
who → discipline → ones
It came on the latest day of Mrs Peggie’s employment tribunal against the RCN.
asserted
It → come → RCN
She has accused the union of discriminating against her because of her gender critical beliefs.
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She → accuse → beliefs
The 53-year-old nurse was suspended from work at Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy, by NHS Fife bosses after she objected to sharing a changing room with trans medic Dr Beth Upton.
asserted
she → suspend → Upton
Ms Hutchison, giving evidence to the latest high-profile tribunal brought by the nurse, said: ‘I have become completely disillusioned with the RCN.
asserted
I → give → RCN
Bethany Hutchison, president of the Darlington Nurses Union, at the tribunal on Monday
‘I do not find them helpful, I think they have abandoned their members, particularly their female members.’
She was among seven nurses who worked for County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust where judges ruled bosses created a ‘hostile environment’.
asserted
bosses → find → environment
It came after nurses objected to Rose Henderson, a biological male who now identifies as a woman, using the single-sex changing room.
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who → come → room
Earlier this year she won a settlement from Epsom and St Helier Hospitals NHS Trust after it suspended her when she spoke out about being told she had used ‘wrong’ pronouns on a patient.
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she → win → patient
It came after in May 2024 she called the paedophile patient ‘mister’, for which she was given a written warning for.
uncertain
she → come → warning
The following March she was suspended with full pay after revealing what had happened.
Yesterday (MONDAY) she told the Dundee-based tribunal that the RCN had not been there for her when she needed it the most.
asserted
she → follow → it
Following the incident involving the patient, Ms Melle told the tribunal, she was asked to write a reflection about the incident which had left her ‘very shaken’.
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which → follow → her
She said: ‘It felt more like punishment to me, going through this awful situation that I had already faced when I needed their help at this time.
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I → say → time
‘To me, my understanding, they just wanted to comply with the patient’s wishes and abandon the biological reality and go with the patient.
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they → want → patient
‘As a nurse its my role to advocate for good practice and also to give excellent care to my patients and at this point I believe the RCN instead were blaming me for not complying with the patient pronoun.’
Ms Melle, who revealed she suffered from ‘sleepless nights’ and ‘panic attacks’ through the ordeal, told the tribunal: ‘I worked so hard for my career, and I needed the RCN to be there for me.’
asserted
RCN → it → me
David Hay KC, acting for the RCN, said union representatives had been in touch with her to discuss options surrounding the case.
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representatives → act → case
After maintaining her position that the union had not supported her, the King’s Counsel said there was ‘no way for the RCN to know that you had the deep-seated concerns that you’re telling us’.
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you → maintain → us
Sandie Peggie, second from right, with fellow nurses outside the tribunal in Dundee
The first, against NHS Fife and Dr Beth Upton, saw Mrs Peggie score a partial victory against the health board when a judge upheld harassment complaints brought against her employer.
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judge → see → employer
However allegations of discrimination, indirect discrimination and victimisation were dismissed.
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allegations → dismiss → discrimination
Mrs Peggie is appealing the judgment.
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Peggie → appeal → judgment
This latest case surrounds Mrs Peggie’s claims the RCN failed to properly support her.
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RCN → surround → her
Stuart Fraser was the RCN representative who was initially approached by Mrs Peggie following the Christmas Eve 2023 changing room incident, which saw a confrontation between the nurse and Dr Upton.
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which → approach → nurse
Naomi Cunningham, representing Mrs Peggie, said: ‘You failed to advise Sandie Peggie on potential discrimination claims that she had, or refer her on to legal advice at the time, because the prevailing culture in the RCN was all gender ideology, and it required to approach her situation on the premise that Dr Upton was a kind of woman, not a kind of man.
uncertain
Upton → represent → man
‘That’s right, isn’t it, and that’s how you came at it.’
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you → ’ → it
He rejected the claim.
uncertain
He → reject → claim
The tribunal continues.
asserted
tribunal → continue → ?
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