A female academic fighting a sex discrimination case hit back at a university’s lawyer after he suggested she could have used her union contacts to advance her career.

Jeanette Findlay, an applied economist, claims she was overlooked for promotion at the University of Glasgow  because of direct and indirect sex discrimination.

She claims a male applicant who was promoted was treated preferentially during the application process and in his career more generally because of his sex.

On the final day of an employment tribunal, where evidence is summarised, Neil MacLean, respresenting the university, said it was “extraordinary” that despite being “on first name terms” with the principal{Professor Sir Anton Muscatelli]  and also a trade union official she had “not once asked for guidance” on how to achieve promotion.

The Herald:

Ms Findlay, who was made a professor of economics last month, said trade unions existed to represent members and it would be, “singularly inappropriate and unethical “  for an official to use their role to advance their own position. 

READ MORE: 'Shameful' failings over women in senior roles at Scots university 

She claims a male applicant was given preferential access to informal mentoring and career enhancing development and was “handed opportunities” for senior roles which boosted his profile.

She said there was no dispute from the university that women are under-represented, particularly in economics, where only 11% in senior roles are female.

She said: “My claim at its core is that I believe I was treated differently on grounds of my sex and in parts of the career that led up to my promotion. 

“Discrimination doesn’t happen in a single day, it happens in all that steps that leads up to that.”

She said the application process was “non transparent and open to bias”because a male applicant had 11 referees, while she had ten.

She asserts that a heavy workload curtailed her opportunities to meet the ‘’esteem’ criteria needed for promotion which can be measured by published work and travelling for research papers and said this was  common among female academics.

READ MORE: Academic denies helping university contact 'justify promotion rejection' 

She said: “Every woman I’ve worked with who wished to be promoted beyond grade nine has had to leave until very recently.”

Mr Maclean said the case was “quite simple” in that Ms Findlay failed to meet the criteria for promotion in 2020.

He said the fact that that she was promoted two years later  when the application process was unchanged meant her claim of direct discrimination was “defeated”.

He said that if indirect sex discrimination had occurred it was “unintentional’.

He added: “However upsetting it might have been there was no unlawful sex discrimination”.

The tribunal was told that the first female professor at the University of Glasgow was appointed in 1970.

Ms Findlay says the application process did not invited her to detail her caring responsibilities but the university say it was clear she could have provided that information herself.

She said she had spent 16 years at grade nine despite the university’s pledge to offer support if employees have been at that level for seven or more years.

She said: “It’s really not good enough for an institution the size of Glasgow to say that is good enough.” 

Mr Maclean said the university had a duty to ensure that senior academics are of the right calibre to perform on the world’s stage.”

The judge will now retire to consider the evidence.