Am I being discriminated against at work for being pregnant? What should I do?

Question

I am a resident assistant at a local retirement home, and my bosses are being very impatient with the fact that I am pregnant. Occasionally, I'll call in sick to work because of nasty morning sickness. Also, I'll have to have my schedule adjusted for doctor's appointments and such. Now, the bosses are treating my like dirt, cutting my hours back drastically, and putting all of my other co-workers. I always work weekends now, I have the the worst shifts (night and graveyard), and even though I've talked nicely to my bosses about this, nothing is being done. They pretty much ignore my every request and continue to gripe and screw me on my hours and shifts.

What can I do about this!? Thank you!

Answer 1

It certainly sounds like discrimination! Gosh, I am really sorry they are treating you so horribly while you are pregnant. It is especially worse if your bosses are women too! They, of all people, should understand how difficult pregnancy can be and be more supportive in this situation.

I reccomend you call an attorney and see what s/he has to say about the situation. Each state has different employment laws and some only have the most basic of laws which the Federal government supports. However, I do believe that this is discrimination based on gender. It is against Federal law to discriminate based on gender, and your being pregnant is a gender issue.

We have laws in this country which protects us against such actions. I would contact an attorney and listen to what s/he has to say about the laws in your state. You can get the best guidence this way and usually just a phone call can provide a lot of answers. Often the call is free as the offices like to screen for viability. If they believe you have a case they will tell you so and offer to see you.

Even if the attorney says your employer is not breaking any laws, you can still contact your labor board and report them. This way you can initiate an investigation and even if it doesn't help right away, it can make a difference in how your state handles these issues in the future. I know it doesn't sound like much, but I would do this because I would hope my case could help women like me in the future.

In the meanwhile you can begin looking for a new job. I know this could be difficult as you are currently pregnant, but nobody can refuse to hire you on this account. That would surely be discriimination, and you could sue them. I don't encourage doing this, only as a last measure, but still, you have to stand up for yourself or nobody else will.

What does your husband say about all of this? Does he think it might be a good idea for you to stop working for these people because of the stress this is causing you and the baby? I hope it is possible for you to leave this job and get a different one. I understand that sometimes it isn't possible to do so, but it is worth looking into. Take back your power and do something proactive like talk with an attorney, look for a different job, and maybe take a break from work if at all possible.

I wish you the very best dear, take good care of yourself and your baby. I am really sorry this is happening, it is so wrong! Boy, it makes me so mad!!

Answer 2

My answer will be based on UK employment law. Firstly any 'pregnancy related' sick leave does not count towards your sick leave count. If a company does this it is indirect sex discrimination as the policy would adversley affect women as opposed to men.
As a woman in terms of employment law you are in a lovely protected bubble. They cannot touch you for anything related to your pregnancy, as again if they do they are putting themseleves at risk of a sex discrimination claim.
My advice to you is to start keeping a diary. Anything untoward, log where you were, who was present (witnesses) and what was said. If you can do this on a PC then it will record the date and time, thus showing it is near to the time when the event occured, this will increase the validity of what you are saying.
Keep copies of all the rotas that show the scheduling. Log your shift patterns against others, showing detremental treatment.
Speak to your manager, tell them that you are very unhappy with the way you are being treated. Tell them that you expect to be treated the same as other members of staff. Highlight to treat you differently is sex discrimination. That it would be up to the company to prove that they have not discriminated, not you that they have.
If things do not get better you will need to submit a formal grievance. This should be done in writing. You should detail the nature of your complaint and provide a catalogue of events you are complaining about along with any evidence.
You should have a grievance procedure, if not then go to ACAS's website and look at the statutory dispute regulations guidance. Your employer is duty bound to follow this guidance, if they fail to do so any claim brought to a tribunal could be increased by 10-50%. Ensure that they follow their policy.
Be clear with them that you are following this process to ensure that you get fair treatment and that you want nothing more and do not want to be forced to take this further.
Please note that you are totally entitled to do this, but be warned it is stressful and time consuming.
Hope this helps

Answer 3

Can you blame them? Look at it from their point of view.

You're missing work all of the time and they can't depend on you, so of course they would give you the night and graveyard shifts so that you have your days free to deal with your morning sickness and you can go to the doctors all you want.

They are legally stuck and can't replace you with someone who will show up to work on time every day. They are losing money because of you. I don't think it's unreasonable for them to cut your hours and give you night shifts so you have all the time you need to take care of your many obligations.

Pregnancy is a lifestyle choice, and currently the only lifestyle choice that is protected by the government. An employer can fire you for other lifestyle choices that make you miss work or work less efficiently, but with pregnancy, they are stuck with you. The least that you could do is be glad they can't fire you and try to get back on their good side by doing your job the best that you can until you take your leave.

Answer 4

First off, it is true that it would be hard for you to prove that your employers are actively discriminating against you for being pregnant. You might know they are (and you have already noticed significant changes in how they treat you, the hours they give you, etc.), but you would probably have a very hard time proving this, say, in a courtroom (in the extreme case that you would want to sue them for discrimination). The best thing you could do right now is to try and stick it out, and make sure to document EVERY single thing that happens at work regarding you and your employers. Make sure you notify them about appointments on time, try to be responsible toward your work duties, and basically try to do your best at work.

They might just be trying to push you into quitting, which to them would be great, because then they wouldn't have to pay you any benefits (compensation, maternity leave, etc.). Just hang in there. They can't fire you. If they do, boy do you have grounds for a lawsuit! So if I were you, I'd kindly express my concerns (once again) to the employer, and start a file at home (to document everything that goes on at work).

I, for one, am also in a terrible job situation right now. I don't have horrible hours like you, but I am being treated differently at work. I'm just trying to hang in there until as close as I can to my due date (I'm due October 23), so I can spend most of my maternity leave with my baby. And I am definitely planning on searching for a better job once I go on mat leave. Screw the people at work! But I'm not going to give them the satisfaction of quitting without receiving any benefits.

So hang in there, honey. It's tough; I know. Contact your local Labor Department to find out your rights regarding maternity leave, discrimination at work, and so on. Think of what's best for you and your baby... Good luck and congrats!

Answer 5

This is actually happening to me. It's so hard to believe how people change on you because you decide to have a baby. You would think you would get so much positive attention everyone would be talking about it more than you. Look on the mandatory employer posters that are probably hung in the staff break room. There are alot of useful numbers to local authorities. Also some even give you steps on making formal complaints. Good luck and be careful.

Answer 6

It's terrible that your employer is not sympathetic to the issues that accompany pregnancy....here's a link that might answer some of your questions. Unfortunately, proving that your employer is changing your shifts, etc... because you are pregnant would be hard. They could come up with many reasons as to why they are making the changes other than your pregnancy. Good Luck...

http://www.eeoc.gov/types/pregnancy.html

Answer 7

They are trying to get you to quit. Don't. I would make them fire me. See they don't want to fire you because then you can sit at home and collect unemployment for 6 months while you are pregnant. They are giving you graveyard etc becuase some co-workers don't understand what it is like to be pregnant. As I told my boss from day one. I am no longer no. 1, but this baby is and he/she will always come first. So if it prohibits me from working so be it.

Answer 8

Unfortunately, I think that you have a responsibility when it comes to your job. Calling out sick a lot for any job for anything isn't going to make your employer happy. The appointments are understandable, but if you can't be there they need somebody who can. You are entitled to maternal leave once your child is born, but aside from that, you probably should be working less hours if your pregnancy is putting the work you have to be doing on the backburner.

Answer 9

Yes honey, contact your local employment or women's rights office immediately. Just a couple of months ago, I was fired from my job because my boss didn't want me to get pregnant and I did. Its MY life. But there was nothing that I could do since she was setting up for it for nearly 4 months. Made me out to be a horrible person and had "documentation" to back it up. PLEASE BE CAREFUL! There are SO many baby-haters out there!

Answer 10

talk to the labor board.. its illegal and they might find ways to fire u.. i'd say stay on top of things and contact ur local woman's rights activists and find out what the regulations are in ur state... be careful, dont let them get away with this... and on a good note:

Congratulations on the BABY!!!!