Kathryn Buttle, 38, is suing her former employer BP over claims of sexual discrimination
A female BP employee who was made redundant shortly after her boss told her ‘women simply aren’t funny’ is suing for sexual discrimination.
Kathryn Buttle, 38, once a surveyor at the global energy company, claimed she was told by Herlinde Mannaerts-Drew that having a sense of humour was not an asset.
Miss Buttle, who was made redundant from the company in March last year, has launched legal action against BP claiming unfair dismissal, sexual discrimination and public interest disclosure.
She alleged that there was an environment of bullying, led by male colleagues, and that poor treatment left her unable to do her job properly.
Miss Buttle claimed Ms Mannaerts-Drew, her boss on the Seismic Delivery Team, said other staff members at BP ‘did not appreciate my personality.’
The surveyor, from Reading, Berkshire, said her line manager told her that ‘because I was a woman I should conceal my sense of humour’ in a one-on-one meeting on February 11 last year, a tribunal heard.
She added: ‘She started by telling me that I was a great talent, one of the most competent surveyors they had and that I had a really good personality that just needed a little ”tweaking”.
‘The words she used were that I was a ”very direct person who could be blunt and to the point”.
‘I said that we were trying to simplify and make things more efficient so surely that was a good thing.
She laughed and told me that although she appreciated it, others did not, and that my personality would be a great asset if I was a man and then advised that I should learn to read the room.
Kathryn Buttle, who worked at BP’s offices in Sunbury on Thames, Surrey (pictured), said there was an environment of bullying led by male colleagues at the firm
‘She told me that ”humour is a great tool to have in the toolbox, but only if you are a man”. She said to me that ”women simply aren’t funny”.
‘I was truly shocked by being told that if I was a man I would fit into the organisation but as I was not, I did not.
‘The fact that she told me that ‘others’ did not appreciate my personality again served to explain the way that I had been treated.’
Miss Buttle said problems began when she was working on a project, under Subsea Execution Manager Stephen Moore, at the company’s office in Sunbury on Thames, Surrey, in 2013.
She said: ‘Mr Moore and other males who worked for him bullied me and generally treated me very badly.
She told me that ”humour is a great tool to have in the toolbox, but only if you are a man”
‘Mr Moore, I am sure, shared his negative feelings about me and my position within the organisation and I believe that this had a direct impact on the redundancy scores that were undertaken in 2016 as part of the redundancy process.’
Responding to the claims, Miss Mannaerts-Drew said she had been ‘shocked’ to learn Miss Buttle was accusing her of sexual discrimination.
She said their conversation had taken place at an informal meeting in a coffee shop.
Miss Mannaerts-Drew added: ‘I found it hurtful that a very personal conversation which was intended to help and support Kat has been used against me in this way.
‘I do not recall exactly how it came up but Kat asked a question about why strong women were seen in a negative way but men who had very direct communication styles were applauded.
‘Kat became very upset and tearful during the discussion and I tried to support her and coach her by sharing my own experiences.
‘The conversation took place during the US presidential election campaign and I recall using the example of Hillary Clinton and how she was often negatively portrayed in the media as abrasive and cold.
‘I contested this example with male world leaders who were often praised for the same traits. I explained that unfortunately, it was all about perception, and strong women were often portrayed in a negative way.
‘I would never say that you need to be a man in order to succeed at BP, because that goes against everything I stand for and my values. I am acutely aware of the challenges of being a woman in a man’s world.
‘I was not saying that women could not use humour, but I had seen Kat try and in my view it had not worked for her.’
Ms Mannaerts-Drew was asked by tribunal Judge Andrew Gumbiti-Zimuto how she had left the meeting with Miss Buttle.
She said: ‘I’m a warm person, I hugged her and held her and consoled her. She calmed down and we continued the conversation.
‘I believe we had a follow up meeting a week or two later. I made sure she was okay.
‘The only thing I was did was to make her aware there were different ways of doing things.
‘I gave her quite a few examples of experiences of actually how myself, as a leader, had to grow and make mistakes.
‘We more talked about facilitated leadership and leadership styles trying to broaden horizons, talking with people and communicating because I just believed.’
Appeal manager Emma Delaney told the hearing: ‘When I was reviewing her MyPlan comments, she had a number of comments, things she was doing well, things she had completed and there were things she needed to improve which was completely normal.
‘She had, like everybody, a number of things to improve upon.’
Miss Buttle’s lawyer, James Dawson, asked Ms Delaney: ‘You don’t say in that letter that you are not upholding the claimant’s appeal because the allegations she makes is factually wrong, do you?’
She responded: ‘So the whole question about how the concern happened when Kat was explaining it to me, as when Herlinde was describing it, I asked her ‘was it a concern?’
‘Kat herself said ‘well she was appearing to try to help but not sure it was.”
The tribunal continues.