According to the tribunal, Onuoha, who grew up in Nigeria, is a devoted Catholic who believes that wearing a cross is a vital way for her to express her faith.
Mary Onuoha, a Nigerian Catholic nurse who was fired wrongfully from her position at the Croydon University Hospital in England, has won her case in front of an employment tribunal.
According to a Daily Mail report, Onuoha was fired after 18 years of service because she wore a cross around her neck at work.
The NHS theatre worker claimed she was repeatedly pressured by superiors who demanded she remove the little gold cross.
She had been a staff member for 18 years and had worn the jewellery for 40 years as a devout Catholic.
However, she claims that starting in 2015, a series of managers told her that if she didn't take the object from around her neck, the situation would 'escalate.'
She said that disciplining her in an operating room jeopardised patient safety, and that her head of department even threatened to call security if she wore it in a clinical setting.
Onuoha's small gold crucifix was informed it was a health and safety hazard and'must not be visible.'
When she continued to refuse to remove the cross, she was demoted to working as a receptionist, which humiliated her.
She was forced off work due to stress in June 2020, and she believed she had no choice but to leave later that year, according to the tribunal.
The tribunal found that, while the hospital claimed that its requests were based on health and safety standards, this was incongruous with the treatment of other employees who wore identical attire and jewellery.
The tribunal ruled in her favour, finding that she was compelled to resign in 2020 because her bosses created a "offensive, hostile, and intimidating environment."
Meanwhile, the hospital trust has apologised to Onuoha and stated that their dress code and uniform policy have been modified after the incident was brought to their attention.
Onuoha worked as a theatre practitioner and was dressed in blue scrubs with a V-necked short-sleeved tunic and slacks on the bottom.
She also donned a standard issue surgical covering from neck to wrist while working as a scrub nurse in the operating room.
When she was wearing scrubs, her cross necklace was visible, but when she was working as a scrubbed in nurse in the theatre, it was hidden.
According to the tribunal, Onuoha, who grew up in Nigeria, is a devoted Catholic who believes that wearing a cross is a vital way for her to express her faith.
"This has always been an attack on my faith," she stated. For the past 40 years, I've carried a cross with me. It's a part of who I am and what I believe, and it's never caused anyone any harm.
"There are members of staff at this hospital who go to a mosque four times a day and no one says anything to them." In the theatre, Hindus wear red bangles on their wrists while female Muslims wear hijabs.
"However, my modest cross around my neck was regarded so threatening that I was no longer permitted to perform my duties." I am a powerful woman, but I have been treated as if I were a criminal."
Because she was compelled to wear many lanyards around her neck while working at the hospital, Onuoha's lawyers claimed health and safety concerns were conflicting.
An employment tribunal panel disagreed with the hospital that Onuoha's removal of the necklace was necessary for her health and safety.
"It is evident to us that the infection risk caused by a necklace of the kinds the Claimant used to wear, when worn by a competent clinician like the Claimant, who cooperated with handwashing protocol, was very minimal," the tribunal concluded.
The Tribunal further found that Onuoha was constructively dismissed by Croydon Health Services NHS Trust, and that the dismissal was both unfair and discriminatory.
It also decided that there was "no logical explanation" as to why other pieces of jewellery and apparel were allowed "but not a fine necklace with a modest pendant of religious devotional importance."
The Tribunal found that the environment was "offensive, aggressive, and frightening," and that interrupting surgery while a patient was on the table was "high-handed," adding, "She practically interrupted surgery to address the issue."
"This was to treat the situation as if it were an emergency, which it was not in any way."
"In our view, the conduct which we have identified as amounting to harassment and/or direct discrimination individually or cumulatively was sufficiently serious to destroy or seriously undermine the relationship of trust and confidence," the tribunal concluded after finding Onuoha was constructively dismissed.
"We do not believe the respondent acted with reasonable and proper cause."
"Much of the behaviour was motivated by a broad health and safety goal. That just did not support the claimant's treatment, given the discrepancy of treatment between employees wearing other religious and non-religious gear that had no work-related function but had a comparable risk profile."
At a later date, a remedy hearing will be held.
"We would like to apologise to Onuoha and appreciate the Employment Tribunal panel for their comprehensive examination of this situation," a spokesman for Croydon Health Services NHS Trust stated.
"It's critical that NHS employees feel free to share their opinions, and that our policies are administered consistently, compassionately, and fairly."
"Since this incident in 2019, our dress code and uniform policy have been updated with the Trust's staff networks and trade union representatives to ensure that it is inclusive and sensitive to all religious and cultural needs, while maintaining effective infection prevention and control measures and protecting the safety of our patients and staff."
"However, in light of this verdict, we will conduct a further examination of our policy and practises."
"We are happy that the tribunal has found in Mary's favour and given justice in this matter," Andrea Williams, Chief Executive of the Christian Legal Centre, which supported the claim, stated.
"From the start, this case has been about the NHS bureaucracy's bullying of a dedicated and hardworking nurse's freedom to wear a cross – the world's most widely recognised and cherished sign of Christian religion. It's encouraging to see the tribunal recognise the truth.
"It was incredible that a seasoned nurse was forced to choose between her beliefs and the career she loves amid a pandemic."
"Any employer who wants to prohibit the wearing of crosses in the workplace will have to think again."
"Mary has spent her entire life to caring for others and following Jesus. It's been an honour to stand by her side in this long battle for justice, and we're very delighted with the result."