my boss discriminates against pregnant women

mummylady83

I've found out i'm pregnant and am really unsure of what to do about work. I've seen my boss discriminate against another mum to be, cutting her hours from 40 to 16 when she found out this worker was pregnant, denying her pay for antenatal appointments, refusing her holidays. What do i do?

lilyanahsmama

Call the labor board that's discrimination

mummylady83

I dont think we've got one of those in the uk.. :-\

mamii2be

Id wait to tell him u don't have to tell him. Id say tell him when ur showing and that's hard to prove he can always say he reduced hours because of something else like work performance

mummylady83

My boss is a mum of 4 and a grandma of 9. She us a devious lying two faced bitch. U would think she'd understand.

baby4ontheway

Before you say anything I would request a performance evaluation which they should do with all employees and when you do tell her if she does the same to you then you need to call a lawyer about discrimination because then you will have proof.

mummylady83

Yeah, thats a good idea. She told my colleague that if she needed anything she just had to ask, then when she asked for a shift change or a day off it got used against her. Boss is now making her redundant.. not fair! I need to stop this happening to me..

willothewisp

Hi, you're from the UK? Check out direct.gov.uk site, they've got all your maternity rights info & what you should expect your employer to do eg risk assessments & paid time off for ante natal appts, also if employer cuts your hours, makes you redundant (for no other reason than pregnancy), starts giving you poor reports, takes disciplinary action for sick days due to pregnancy etc its classed as unlawful sex discrimination - there are links on the site to give further advice. hope this helps both you & your colleague & wish you lots of luck, sorry for the essay but it makes me mad when hear of things like this, pregnancy can be stressful enough as it is without arsehole bosses!!

jennys3rd

omg. I really feel for you. Was also going to suggest direct.gov for advice. Maybe if you got in touch with citizens advice too and tell them of your concerns, they may give you advice on how/when to tell your boss and ways of making some kind of incident log just in case. If they are involved beforehand, it may be to your advantage. Good luck. Keep us informed!! Got me wondering how my boss will react now

sleepyjenf

As willowthewisp says its classed as sexual discrimination and your employer can get in serious trouble if you take it further legally.

AND83

What kind of work is it that you do?

mrs_america

Laws r different in each country. In europe some employers don't hirer weman that r in there child barring age. That sucks. And in the US companies who have less than 15 employees don't even have to follow rules of the labor board.

cheryl74

If your in the UK you need acas. Look them up online. Your aloud all reasonable time of for appts and they have to do a risk assesment the moment you tell them your pregnant. This includes checking that the hours you work are suitable for you. That's the law. But report them to acas immediately, they will give you advice and even contact the company for you I'd you wish x good luck and don't take any crap x x

mrselton81

Legally your employer cannot discriminate against any person who is pregnant. Also you do not need to tell your employer until 15 weeks before your baby is due. Look up your rights but i'm sure they cannot. Good luck hun xxx

katlilly

The whattoexpect.com site has links and an article on maternity laws. Good luck!

mummylady83

Thanks girls, will look into it & i'll let u kno how i get on xx

mama_uk

If you're not already in one join a union. They should help. Legally you don't need to say anything until quite late on. Also keep a dated and signed diary of anything discriminatory that she does.

mummylady83

@mama_uk I wouldn't know where to find a union to join. I know legally I don't have to but people I work with are on my fb so when it becomes common knowledge she'll find out quite quickly and I'd rather she heard it from me. Who would it need to be signed by?

mama_uk

Sign and date it yourself. What union you join would depend on your work. Unite union covers most areas of work. You may not get legal representation at an employment court, as you'll be a new member, but they will be able to give you advice and talk to her for you and come to formal meetings. I think you pay a reduced rate when you're on maternity.

mummylady83

I'll look into it. Thank you @mama_uk and everyone else too. I'm still nervous about telling her, but not as much as I was. You're all fab x