Demoted after maternity leave

[Maisy313]

I've been back about 6 weeks, we are a small team in a big very well known corporation. Our boss is going on maternity leave, my colleague who was on the same level as me will be replacing her (all fine) but the person who was my junior and stepped up on my maternity leave to my position is now going to be deputy (promotion not an advertised position), the most junior person on the team is also being given a promotion. So all in all I'm the only person on the team not to get a pay rise or a promotion. All former appraisals have been great, never had any bad comments. Was told today by boss that they were just doing the best thing for the team. I want to hand in notice but literally can't afford to until I find something new, feel so sick. I was told that I was a valued member and they did appreciate me but that's just how things are.

Disappointed

The OP states
"I didn't know the promotion was available, I wasn't invited to any meetings regarding these changes, all my appraisals have been excellent, my boss spent the meeting telling me how valued I am but that it was bad timing"

So clearly some wording was used that gave the impression that it was "bad timing"

You do realise that discriminating against someone because they have taken maternity leave is unlawful? If you read the thread you'll see that discussed with links you could read and educate yourself about

I do indeed, and deal with grievances at work as part of my role.

Which is why it would be justified and worded appropriately to make the reasons for appointing the person that was given the role clear, whilst not mentioning or hinting at "Maternity" or "Leave".

If the manager has a modicum of intelligence it's not hard to do. But sitting down & spouting crap about "bad timing" leaves them wide open for whatever action the OP takes.

Look when you hire an employment lawyer it isn't about all guns blazing. It's about making sure you, as an employee, are supported through the internal process to investigate the issue. HR are there to protect the Company's interests not the employees. Bad timing.... Hmmm that's discrimination because if you had not been on leave at that given moment you would have been given the deputy role in the team while the manager was away on leave.

So yes get a lawyer. The company have already failed the employee. I wouldn't have much confidence in them not failing me again.

Exactly Iknow (apologies if I was a bit snarky before). And I would say there is enough evidence in the op that as the employer I would be worried and wanting to make sure everything was as watertight we as possible.

Bubbles in your scenario the employer is totally liable for the costs they incur.

Someone asked for evidence. I would say the "bad timing" comment, lack of transparent process and unadvertised vacancies are all evidence that there might have been discrimination. But as I said whether or not just the cost of defence is massive and should be avoided by following good practice and the law. That doesn't mean there shouldn't be further investigation of course there should be but from what the op has posted there is an issue because she is unhappy and she feels she has been discriminated against because she took maternity leave and that would be of concern to any reputable HR professional.

Don't get a lawyer just yet - you need more info. Plus they are crippling expensive and you must make a grievance first. You can get free advice from the organisations posted. Not everyone posting on this thread is resident in the UK and things like legal expenses cannot be recovered except in very rare, exceptional circumstances.

Some of the responses on this thread are depressing; there are laws in place to protect women from this sort of thing. It doesn't matter that the OP has been overlooked in favour of other women, what matters is that her colleagues were not themselves excluded from the promotion process for being pregnant, on maternity leave or just returned from maternity leave but she appears to have been excluded for the latter. Just because "well XXX happens in my organisation" does not make the OP entitled nor does it excuse the quite possibly illegal actions of the organisation that she works for.

If I were the OP I wouldn't go in guns blazing with talk of tribunal etc. I would start a paper trail with an email to the manger in question explaining my disappointment at not being consulted about/overlooked for promotion based on your previous appraisals and ask them to explain why you weren't included in the pool for promotion. Ask them to clarify that the "bad timing" statement coincides with your return to work from maternity leave and state that you would very much like a review of your future role in the business ASAP. CC in HR. If they know employment law but at all they will develop a squeaky bum and give your manager a very short sharp lesson in how they should have approached these promotions.

I got some sound advice from www.workingfamilies.org.uk when I went through something similar. I took the above approach, things improved not only for me but all of the women who subsequently became pregnant in my organisation.

OP, I am an employment barrister. I think most of the misconceptions on this thread have been cleared up already but just wanted to make a few quick points.

1. I think Disappointedone suggested upthread that you are only protected against discrimination on grounds of pregnancy or maternity leave if it occurs during the protected period (i.e. whilst you are pregnant or on leave). This is not correct for various reasons, the most important of which is that if you suffer discrimination because you have taken maternity leave, the protection continues after you have returned.

1. It doesn't matter whether the promotion was formal or informal, advertised or not. If your employer failed to consider you for, or did not award you, the promotion because you had taken maternity leave, that would be a detriment and could constitute pregnancy/maternity discrimination.

1. From what you have said about the conversation with your boss, there are red flags for any internal HR person ("bad timing" combined with a recent return from maternity leave = not good).

1. If you want some more free online resources you could try looking at the Equality and Human Rights Commission's website: www.equalityhumanrights.com/about-us/our-work/key-projects/managing-pregnancy-and-maternity-workplace/pregnancy-and-maternity-questions-and-answers

1. If you want to try to resolve things internally you need to look at your organisation's grievance policy (they may have a specific one for use in discrimination complaints if they are a large employer) and follow the steps in that.

1. If you want to bring an employment tribunal claim, bear in mind that there are strict time limits for doing so (claims generally have to be brought within 3 months).

If you would like any suggestions for places to go for advice, feel free to PM me.

OP, elsewhere you say that you work 3.5 days a week.........

1. I think Disappointedone suggested upthread that you are only protected against discrimination on grounds of pregnancy or maternity leave if it occurs during the protected period (i.e. whilst you are pregnant or on leave). This is not correct for various reasons, the most important of which is that if you suffer discrimination because you have taken maternity leave, the protection continues after you have returned.

For how long? A year? 10? What's the point of a period being specified if it continues ad infinitum? The impact of being off for a year can easily cause someone else to be a better fit for promotion, without the reason given being explicitly stated as mat leave.

Sadly the OP has given scant detail.

DisappointedOne - if the reason for your unfavourable treatment is because you have at any point in the past taken maternity leave, you are protected. Obviously you need to prove (or actually, given the burden of proof provisions in the Equality Act, raise a prima facie case) that your past maternity leave is the reason for the unfavourable treatment. It is obviously more likely that the maternity leave will be the reason for the treatment if the two are close in time, but it is not impossible that you could be discriminated against for having taken maternity leave some time after you have returned to work. It is all a question of fact.

Clearly we don't have enough facts to determine that issue on this thread. It is often hard for tribunals to determine the reason for unfavourable treatment even after having read pages of documentation and heard witnesses give evidence. I think all we can do on this thread is point the OP in the right direction to obtain some RL advice.

Disappointed, I think the answer to your question about how long the protection goes on for is pretty obvious. It goes on as long as the discrimination does. It's obviously very far fetched, but if you have been back from maternity leave for a couple of years but you are denied promotion because you dared to take that leave, you will still be protected.

See this extract from the EHRC's website:

When are you protected from maternity discrimination?

It is maternity discrimination to treat you unfavourably when you are on compulsory maternity leave.

It is maternity discrimination if you are treated unfavourably because of your ordinary or additional maternity leave, even if the treatment happens after that maternity leave has come to an end. For example, if your job is changed unfavourably on your return from leave because you have been on maternity leave, this would be unlawful
maternity discrimination. This is different to protection from when pregnancy discrimination applies [link to pregnancy - where we deal with when you are covered].

www.equalityhumanrights.com/about-us/our-work/key-projects/managing-pregnancy-and-maternity-workplace/pregnancy-and-maternity-questions-and-answers/returning-work-overview

Clearly we don't have enough facts to determine that issue on this thread. It is often hard for tribunals to determine the reason for unfavourable treatment even after having read pages of documentation and heard witnesses give evidence. I think all we can do on this thread is point the OP in the right direction to obtain some RL advice.

Which is what I've been saying all along. Whatever was said behind closed doors it is going to be exceptionally difficult to prove, unless the company has been monumentally stupid and put a reference to maternity leave in any written discussion about the changes.

Well, not quite, DisappointedOne - you gave her some incorrect advice about the period over which she is protected against discrimination. I think it's important to clear stuff like that up, because otherwise the OP might have thought she had no legal protection, regardless of the factual situation. I agree that it is not particularly productive for all of us to go poring over the OP's relatively brief posts to try to work out whether she has a cast iron case of maternity discrimination. But I do think it is important that she knows she might have a claim, and that she takes some RL advice from a qualified person about what to do next (if, that is, she wants to take any action at all).

I agree with Welshwabbit that that isn't really what you have been saying DisappointedOne. However this is aibu so a bit of benefit of the doubt is allowed and we all make mistakes from time to time :)

I think all the HR professionals and the employment and other lawyers on this thread have actually been very careful not to say the op has or does not have a case or if there definitely has or has not been discrimination. There is a lot of if "X is true then Y would apply" and "if you decide to do A this will probably happen" and "consider XYZ" and "it could possibly be..." as well as factual information about the process of raising a grievance/what the law states and also what the reality is vs the theory.

There is some excellent advice on this thread op and some utter bollocks! and I hope you find it useful. I also really hope you went in today and it has all been sorted out and you're happy - because that is the best outcome all round.

I've always understood there to be a time limit with maternity protection and that beyond that it would be condidered sex discrimination but am happy to be corrected. Either way it's likely to be exceptionally hard to prove unless the company have been extremely foolish (not beyond the realms of possibility, but stills).

And I have said throughout that it's absolutely impossible for us to say whether there has been any discrimination. Someone being upset isn't proof of that.