Court backs Catholic school’s firing of teacher over Instagram posts

[Michie]

Gozen Soydag plans to appeal employment tribunal's ruling

A school pastoral manager in north London plans to appeal an employment tribunal's ruling that supported a Catholic school firing her over her social media posts in favor of biblical marriage.

Gozen Soydag, a 37-year-old social media influencer in Enfield, England, made the posts available to her 30,000 followers on Instagram, leading to St. Anne’s Catholic High School for Girls firing her in 2023 for “Christian beliefs on marriage and relationships she had expressed and put forward for debate on Instagram in her own time,” according to advocacy group the Christian Legal Centre (CLC).

The Watford Employment Tribunal on Jan. 14 upheld the school’s dismissal. CLC attorneys had argued for wrongful dismissal, harassment, discrimination and breaches of Soydag’s human rights on grounds of her Christian beliefs.

Continued below.

Court backs Catholic school’s firing of teacher over Instagram posts

A school pastoral manager in north London plans to appeal an employment tribunal s ruling that supported a Catholic school firing her over her social media posts in favor of biblical marriage

www.christianpost.com

 

[RileyG]

Sad.

 

[Michie]

Sad.

Confusing too.

 

[chevyontheriver]

Gozen Soydag plans to appeal employment tribunal's ruling

A school pastoral manager in north London plans to appeal an employment tribunal's ruling that supported a Catholic school firing her over her social media posts in favor of biblical marriage.

Gozen Soydag, a 37-year-old social media influencer in Enfield, England, made the posts available to her 30,000 followers on Instagram, leading to St. Anne’s Catholic High School for Girls firing her in 2023 for “Christian beliefs on marriage and relationships she had expressed and put forward for debate on Instagram in her own time,” according to advocacy group the Christian Legal Centre (CLC).

The Watford Employment Tribunal on Jan. 14 upheld the school’s dismissal. CLC attorneys had argued for wrongful dismissal, harassment, discrimination and breaches of Soydag’s human rights on grounds of her Christian beliefs.

Continued below.

Court backs Catholic school’s firing of teacher over Instagram posts

A school pastoral manager in north London plans to appeal an employment tribunal s ruling that supported a Catholic school firing her over her social media posts in favor of biblical marriage

www.christianpost.com

WOT?

Normally I would say that a Catholic school has every right to fire someone who doesn't live up to Catholic teaching. But here it looks much more complicated than that. Seems maybe the school, which says they promote authentic Catholic teaching, might be a whole lot more secular in fact. And the teacher, far from being a woke LGBTQWERTY advocate and practitioner, is instead closer to the Catholic position in fact.

It's an upsidedown world. I still think the school should be able to set their own standard for teachers and expect them to keep to the standards, but shouldn't the school have a bishop setting standards for the school? Is the bishop any good? Seems like a failure somewhere here, and maybe not with the teacher.

Reminds me of the two men married to each other and teaching in two different Catholic schools. One gets fired. The other not. The difference was one was diocesan with a good bishop. The other run by an order that had sadly slid into corruption.

 

[Michie]

Woman sacked by Catholic school for pro-marriage Instagram posts to appeal ruling which upheld dismissal - Catholic Herald

A social media influencer sacked by a Catholic school over her private Instagram posts is to appeal against a tribunal ruling which upheld her dismissal. Gozen Soydag, 37, was fired as pastoral manager from St Anne’s Catholic High School for Girls in Enfield, North London, because the beliefs...

catholicherald.co.uk

 

[chevyontheriver]

Woman sacked by Catholic school for pro-marriage Instagram posts to appeal ruling which upheld dismissal - Catholic Herald

A social media influencer sacked by a Catholic school over her private Instagram posts is to appeal against a tribunal ruling which upheld her dismissal. Gozen Soydag, 37, was fired as pastoral manager from St Anne’s Catholic High School for Girls in Enfield, North London, because the beliefs...

catholicherald.co.uk

Is Miss Soydag a Catholic, or some other kind of Christian. I get the vibe that she may be some other kind of Christian. Not that that makes it OK to fire her. Not that the school is in the right. I just got that vibe. And the vibe that the school is itself more woke than Catholic in actual function.

 

[Michie]

Is Miss Soydag a Catholic, or some other kind of Christian. I get the vibe that she may be some other kind of Christian. Not that that makes it OK to fire her. Not that the school is in the right. I just got that vibe. And the vibe that the school is itself more woke than Catholic in actual function.

I was wondering the same. She was a former Muslim. (Cultural). But as far as her Christian faith, I can’t find anything that says what tradition she follows.

Here is a bit more detail:

I was fired for social media posts about being a good Christian wife

Gozen Soydag, 37, was let go from her job at as a learning support worker at London's St Anne's Catholic High School for Girls on account of posts on Instagram celebrating traditional Christian values.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[chevyontheriver]

I was wondering the same. She was a former Muslim. (Cultural). But as far as her Christian faith, I can’t find anything that says what tradition she follows.

Here is a bit more detail:

I was fired for social media posts about being a good Christian wife

Gozen Soydag, 37, was let go from her job at as a learning support worker at London's St Anne's Catholic High School for Girls on account of posts on Instagram celebrating traditional Christian values.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Non-denominational, whatever that may entail. No evidence at all of ever having become Catholic. OK.

And the school comes off as a place that 'resides within the Catholic tradition' but not really in any meaningful way.

What a sad story. In a real Catholic school her postings would have had positive criticism from faculty to make them even better. She would have had the chance to refine her Christianity towards the fullness of the faith. Glad my kids didn't go to a Catholic school like that.