An article in the Birmingham Mail [2 May 2014] reports that an RAF nurse, Group Captain Wendy Williams, who treated wounded soldiers at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital, has been awarded £560,000 after a successful sex discrimination claim against the Ministry of Defence (MoD). Williams complained she was not selected for the position of Commodore in the Defence Medical Group because she was a woman. She told the tribunal: “It was apparent the promotion process was stacked against me as a nurse and midwife.” The tribunal also heard that only six of 470 top positions among the Armed Forces medical staff had been held by women between 2011 and 2012 and Williams claimed a male group captain got the ‘top medical job’ instead of her. At the remedies hearing  Williams was awarded £557,038 in compensation, which includes £204,079 for loss of earnings, £105,585 pension loss and £22,000 for injury to feelings, plus more than £500 interest. The tribunal also made several recommendations to the MoD, including that those involved in promotion of recruitment should receive more training in equality and diversity. 

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