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On
the 7th January 2009 I delivered a speech at a BT Diversity event hosted by BT
Kaleidoscope (BT's Network for LGBT people) the event was titled “Part of the
Action” and I gave a personal perspective on being out at work. |
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Good Afternoon, I’m Duncan Strivens |
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(Slide 1) “Not my choice in wall paper” |
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On my first day of employment I was signed up to the Post Office Engineering Union (POEU) by the local union official. I served a Three year apprenticeship with BT, during which I had my first taste of union life, when I took part in a day of industrial action over the privatisation of British Telecom. I finished my apprenticeship at Bromley TSVC (That’s a Telephone Service Vehicle Centre) working as a Business Systems Fitter (Customer switchboards to you and me). The yard was white male dominated and could be described today as suffering with institutionally racism and homophobia. At this point in my life being GAY was confusing, I did not fit my perception of a gay man, that was a stereotypical view, Quinton Crisp, Freddie Mercury, Larry Grayson, oh and lets not forget that popular film at the time “Police Academy” and it’s portrayal of gay life as the men in the “Blue Oyster Bar” this scared me off gay pubs for years. My first active involvement with the union (now the National Union Communications) was during the 1987 industrial action over pay and terms and conditions. |
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(Slide 2) “I kept the picket line fire going for three weeks; no one was worried about the carbon footprint” |
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1989 Saw me trade my van in for a keyboard, moving to my current office in Eltham SE London, Eltham is an open plan office of around 60 desks. For the first time in my career I’m now working in a multicultural environment. Grading issues within the office brought me more involvement with the London south east branch. With regular attendance at branch meeting, it wasn’t long before I was elected as a branch officer. In 1998 the union (now the Communication Workers Union) sent me on a union skills course, at the unions training school. Whilst being educated about the structure of the union I discovered the existence of the unions Lesbian and Gay committee. Making further enquires about the committee revealed they were to hold a weekend Lesbian and Gay seminar. So in July that year, I sneaked off without telling anyone to my first Lesbian and Gay weekend – Was I scarred out my wits, was I walking in to some re-enactment of the “Blue Oyster Bar”. At several roundabouts on my way to oxford I considered turning around and heading home. But there was some driving force that kept me going. And what a revelation that weekend was. No drag queens No men dressed in leather, just a normal bunch of people, some of which are now life long friends. The weekend showed me a side of gay life I never knew existed. I OUT’ed myself for the first time, to a group of people, whilst attending a union equality course. An experiment to myself, I used the knowledge and experience I had gained from the weekend seminar. After all I’d never met any of these people before, at any point I could walk out if things turned bad, and after the course I didn’t have to see them again. During the course I explained my perceived fears of being OUT’ed in the work place, with the possibility of subsequence bullying, harassment, and worst having to leave my job. Then I met Tim Tolley a member of Birmingham external branch. Tim an ex-member of the arms forces explained his embarrassment of the time he served in West Germany where his squads evening entertainment was to go out gay bashing. Tim and I became a close friends, saying that if I every had a problem at work, he would come down and sort it out. From that day I always had this vision of a 16 ton yellow Gang lorry full of burley jointers, travelling down the M1 and taking a few of my colleagues aside for a quiet word. I Joined the unions Lesbian and Gay committee in October 1999 and OUT’ed myself the same year to the rest of my office, to my surprise many colleagues had suspected for years that I was probably gay, but respected my privacy and never said anything. This I found very hard to take, if only I’d known I could have OUT’ed myself many years before. Today I use this example in teaching people about gay life and what they might not have expected in being OUT at work. Tim died in 1990 of leukaemia – I give credit to Tim for his mentoring and encouragement, without that vision I would never of OUT’ed myself. The murder of Steven Lawrence on 22 April 1993 and subsequent Macpherson inquiry brought about a review within the CWU to look into institutional racism and homophobia The review was lead by the general secretary, and consisted of a number of fact finding interviews. While I was giving evidence to the review, on the support and confidence the CWU had given me to come OUT. The general secretary Sir Tony Young suggested the Voice (Magazine of the CWU) ran my coming OUT story as a way of promoting the work of Lesbian and Gay people within the CWU |
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(Slide 3) OUT'ed in the Voice to 230,000 members of the CWU |
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So I was interviewed, photographed and OUT’ed to 230,000 CWU members by the Voice in June 2000 A close straight BT friend who’d read the article, e-mailed me a message of support , he quoted “I suppose it’ll be my turn to come OUT one day too” (he’s now OUT and sitting over there) So I had my bit of fun being the page five fellow. The Very last people I OUT’ed myself to was family and straight friends, by this time I didn’t care what they thought. The creation of BT Kaleidoscope (BTK) was brought about by a number of BT employers, including some of my colleagues from the CWU. I joined BTK in the first day it’s of launch. Early London BTK networking meeting were very popular, but disbanded when the organiser left BT. So in June 2002, with the help of the BTK mailing list. I re-launched the London social network. We try to meet up monthly in central London, we’ve had are ups and downs, I even spent a number of nights standing with only myself for company, but the best nights are always when a new member turns up for the first time. I believe the network has played an importance part in the lives of our colleagues, for some it’s the first time they’ve met another gay colleague, others believing they were the only gay in BT and a number have felt happy to come OUT at work, Without our network that would never have happened. |
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(Slide 4) OUT with my union banner at one of many pride events |
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Within the union I’ve helped establish a motion based LGBT conference, I attend the Annual TUC LGBT conference, and have the privilege to edit OUTtalk magazine of the unions LGBT committee. I have often been told by branch officers “there are on gay people in my branch” I reply “how do you know if there not OUT” One of the most proud things I’ve done in my life as an OUT gay male, is to help organise a demonstration again Bromley Councils decision to deny the use of their municipal buildings for civil partnerships. After a long campaign the council backed down. Two of my best friends became the first in the borough to hold a civil. I was invited as guest of honour. I had to wait nearly twenty years to be OUT at work, Today I use my influence and campaign as much as possible to provide a safe working environment. Colleagues should be able to be OUT at work from day one. No-one should have to hide in the closet. “Never forget that yellow gang lorry” and Thank you for listening… |
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