[1] In 1995, Penman began working full-time for the NUCPS as an organiser, then in 2000 he transferred to the FDA union, where he served as national officer.
On election, he said that "you couldn’t put a cigarette paper between myself and [his predecessor] Jonathan [Baume] in terms of our approach to trade unionism", and identified the union's key challenge as maintaining pay and conditions to prevent a brain drain from the senior civil service.
The FDA argued that Johnson misinterpreted the definition of bullying in the workplace, and that Patel's presence in the role was detrimental to civil servants.
In December 2021, the FDA lost the legal battle, with Penman stating "[w]hilst we are disappointed in the final judgment, there is a lot here that helps us protect civil servants from the conduct of ministers.
[5] Penman urged Rishi Sunak to reform the complaints system to help sort out a “toxic work culture” in Whitehall.