Senior International Correspondent, ASSIST News Service
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| Celestina Mba, formerly a carer for disabled children in Merton, who is suing her employer for giving her a disciplinary after she refused to work on Sundays Photo: CLARA MOLDEN |
LONDON, UK (ANS) -- A 57 year-old children's worker who was forced to resign over her desire not to work on Sundays will appear before an employment tribunal in the United Kingdom on Monday (February 20).
According to the Christan Legal Centre www.christianlegalcentre.com , Celestina Mba worked for over three years at the Brightwell Children's Home in Morden, a respite home for children with disabilities. She was forced to resign in 2010 after her employer chose to no longer accommodate her Christian beliefs.
The CLC says in a media release that Ms Mba has been a Christian since a young girl and has never worked on a Sunday. Her beliefs were initially respected by her employer, the London Borough of Merton, who were informed before she started the job that she would have difficulties working on a Sunday.
But the Council later changed its mind and she was forced to choose between her job or her faith, CLC said.
Mba said that she would have worked nights and Saturdays, unpopular shifts as people want to be with their families or go out, or would have accepted less pay, but despite her offers no compromise was accepted.
Ms Mba is being supported by the Christian Legal Centre and has instructed human rights barrister Paul Diamond to take on the case.
Andrea Williams, Director of the Christian Legal Centre said: "This is another case where we see intolerance towards the Christian faith and a lack of willingness to make accommodation for it .
"Celestina was a hard working employee who wished to observe Sunday. Her employers knew about this and agreed to it from the outset, yet later changed their minds. They forced her to choose between her job and her work.
"Surely it is possible to devise a rota system that respects and accommodates the Christian belief of employees especially where such a rota had worked successfully in the past. A public body like the London Borough of Merton should set the highest standards and not behave like this. No doubt Merton will spend considerable amounts of public money to resist this Christian lady."
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For further information, Contact: Andrea Williams, Director of Christian Legal Centre: +44 (0)771 259 1164
www.christianlegalcentre.com
www.christianlegalcentre.com
| ** Michael Ireland is the Senior International Correspondent for ANS. He is an international British freelance journalist who was formerly a reporter with a London (United Kingdom) newspaper and has been a frequent contributor to UCB UK, a British Christian radio station. While in the UK, Michael traveled to Canada and the United States, Albania,Yugoslavia, Holland, Germany,and Czechoslovakia. He has reported for ANS from Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Israel, Jordan, China,and Russia. Michael's volunteer involvement with ASSIST News Service is a sponsored ministry department -- 'Michael Ireland Media Missionary' (MIMM) -- of A.C.T. International of P.O.Box 1649, Brentwood, TN 37024-1649, at: Artists in Christian Testimony (A.C.T.) International where you can make a donation online under 'Donate' tab, then look for 'Michael Ireland Media Missionary' under 'Donation Category' to support his stated mission of 'Truth Through Christian Journalism.' Michael is a member in good standing of the National Writers Union, Society of Professional Journalists, Religion Newswriters Association, Evangelical Press Association and International Press Association. If you have a news or feature story idea for Michael, please contact him at: ANS Senior International Reporter |  |
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