Racism still rife in Probation

[Pulp fiction]

I have been in the service for almost 30 years. And even after all the training, policies, diversity teams, the implementation of the McPherson report, and Mubarak Enquiry findings and recommendations. I still sit in an open plan office in a city office and get called a ‘P’ word, i should have been a taxi driver, and all ‘p’s’ look th same and I apparently stink of curry, I hear negative extremely racist comments towards black staff and offenders also, and after Brexit the comments got even worse. My colleagues sit around hearing all that’s said yet not a single person challenges these behaviours.

Management won’t do anything unless it’s submitted officially, which would ultimately result in an entire team of 20 NPS staff being disciplined, which they won’t do as morales already at rock bottom. And by me doing this will Defo make me fit in better won’t it. And who will they believe 20 white staff or the one Asian staff member.

It’s sadly got to a stage that after all these years of challenging oppression of all types. I’ve lost the will to go on. I’m scared of going into work and am resigning within the next few weeks, as it’s got to me. There’s no support there’s a lot of collusion and the policies aren’t worth the paper they are printed on.

What has the service learnt.... nothing.

The system continues to fail us, and sadly after 30 years racism has beaten me.

[tabbycat]

This is a difficult scenario on which an outsider such as me might try to make comment. I don't know you, your colleagues, line managers, any of your traits or idiosyncrasies,.. I don't know your office or its or your history. I see that you've been a Forum member for about a year and this is your only post. I was in probation practice for about 35 years, many of them as a Napo member, and many as a Branch Officer and Union Rep. I experienced marginalisation and targeting many times. Offices can be horrible for backbiting, gossip, tale-telling (often embroidered, based on supposition, malicious, exaggerated, or even made-up), ganging-up etc. I've Repped in several such cases and seen more than once that things had deteriorated because management had failed to resolve - or even failed to make any steps to try to resolve - problems between personnel. The limitations of this Forum design are ones that I've commented on before ad nauseam and I'm unable to Private Message you. However, were I still active as a Union Rep and you came to me for advice/assistance, then I'd want to deconstruct this scenario with you. I'd be saying that your portrayal: is it the office vs you? All white vs you? Isn't there anyone on your side, anyone who could broker this deteriorating situation, anyone you could talk with or act as intermediary? Your portrayal is not interactive: it says nothing of how you are in the office, how you interact, whether you've tried to resolve this or if you make it worse. Things don't just happen to you. So, is it 100% fault on the part of 20 Whites, 0% fault to 1 Pakistani? I don't know. I'm just asking. You need to think, reflect, own your own interaction in this, and try to bring a problem-solving rather than just problem-finding and fault-finding focus to this. Are they 100% unreasonable, and you 100% reasonable? Think about it. Might there be 80:20, 50:50,... or whatever fault line? Can you change anything in your interactions to forge a progress path? I've Repped in several cases wherein the Napo member was picked-on, did have cause for complaint, but was also part of the problem: one was haughty in attitude to colleagues and prone to one-liners putting them down sarcastically, another whose serial sexual liaisons were built on fecklessness, infidelity, deceit,...Both those people were detested by some of their colleagues. I could go on. Some played the victim role but really needed to look in the mirror. Yes, I had many deserving Repping cases too. What I'd say to you now is that you don't just resign from. You resign to as well. To what? Don't act impulsively. I put up with what seemed a lifetime of angst in Probation, felt like resigning many times, but didn't have a good place to resign to. Think laterally: an office move, a change of role,...? Eventually I took up a prison-based role which had lain open for over 12 months because no-one wanted it. I'd always said that I'd never work in a prison. I went there as a refuge though because my office ambience was appalling and I was feeling sick travelling in in the morning. The prison working environment proved much better but it took me months to regain something of my own self. I wish you well and regret that I can't do more. Have you spoken with an experienced Napo Rep?