Subtle ways we are discriminated against during Maternity Leave

[Lampshadelegs]

My ML is coming to an end soon (sob) and on the whole and definitely compared to other countries, I have enjoyed fantastic pay and conditions.

Also my work place have been very accommodating about my request for flexi working upon my return so I know I'm very lucky.

BUT... just a couple of things that I have been expected to just put up with such as:
A) not knowing how much will be put in my bank account on pay day each month and having to spend hours back and forth ringing HR (who couldn't organise a Hen party in Newquay) trying to get a break down of how much I'll get each month so I can actually plan my life.
B) Now on returning, my boss being funny with me about expressing some confusion about the keeping in touch day policy vs how he has interpreted it and asking for some clarity on this. So again, I have no idea how much money I will have at the end of the month.

This, I see as discrimination because had I not had a baby I would know how much £ would be in my account and no one else in my work place is unsure about these fundamental things.

A) shouldn't you still have been receiving pay slips?

Maternity pay is easily calculated and bank accounts can be checked.

I don't see a manager having confusion about keeping in touch days as discrimination, lots of people have to ask others for clarification or query aspects of work.

Having to give up my beloved job and hard earned senior position after 23 years of working there because New manager would not negotiate or consider a change to my working hours to allow me to stay in my job because my previous hours meant trying to find over £700 per month child care, which I just didn't have.
Not subtle, but makes me fucking furious nonetheless.

There is a lot of discrimination involving women and maternity leave. But I don't think these examples are.

Can't you work your pay out yourself? That's what I am doing.

The keeping in touch days are not compulsory Its 10 days which you take anytime during ML- agreed with work that is and paid at your normal rate on top on of your maternity money
Why is he/she confused about this?

You should be getting payslips every month as you're still an employee
I don't understand why you don't know how much you're getting each month it's 90% of your wage for the first 6 weeks then a lower percentage for the rest of the time
Sounds a bit disorganised to me

Rather than discriminating. I mean

Why aren't you getting payslips? They are a legal requirement.

Will watch with interest. I go on mat leave with my first baby in a few months and HR have been brilliant but I've been pushing for a promotion and in my performance review was asked by my seniors if I think il have a 'crisis in confidence' that may affect my ability to do the promotion when I return. I don't think anyone else would be asked this in thier performance review so can see where you are coming rom.

Not being invited to the Christmas party, despite ALL staff being invited. Not even an email to see if I'd be interested.

Apparently this is actually discrimination, it feels so petty to complain about it but it felt important at the time, I'd had an emergency birth so I hadn't even had time to say good bye to anyone.

I went on ML years ago when terms and conditions were not so good, and even then I got a monthly payslip, so that sounds like disorganisation from your employer.

Sounds like your boss has not been properly trained on KIT days. My understanding is that they are an option (not compulsory) for during your leave, and if you come in for part of a day that counts as a whole day, for which you should receive your standard daily rate?

I've got to be honest, that doesn't sound like discrimination.

a) Mat pay is a pain in the backside for HR too - it's paid Sunday to Saturday on a weekly basis which totally throws a monthly set date payroll system...however you should still be getting payslips at the same intervals as previously. If they've had to make an adjustment for yours to be sent in the post then there's going to be a time delay because payroll should happen at agreed intervals not according to one or two exceptions to the norm.

b) KIT days are optional. If you haven't used them and don't want to then there's no obligation. If you have used them and are not on enhanced mat pay (full pay) for the time the KIT day happened then you are entitled to be paid a normal day's wage. Your manager just needs to read up on that. Again not discrimination, my manager has no idea what the absence management procedure is because we never call in sick often enough to trigger anything formal, it doesn't mean they are a bad manager...just that they'd rather concentrate on things other than policy documents.

If you want examples of maternity discrimination hop over to Pregnant Then Screwed website. They have some awful examples of maternity discrimination.

I don't feel this is an example of discrimination.

HR are probably waiting for an answer from payroll. Can you email payroll directly?

Agree with others - these are not examples of discrimination.

I wasn't allowed to tell clients I was pregnant because my company were scared to tell them they weren't properly replacing me and hadn't figured out a proper plan. When it finally became too obvious to ignore I had to be vague or pretend my due date was further away than it was so they wouldn't panic.

It damaged my reputation with some but luckily the company was sold while I was on Mat leave and the new owners put people above profits

Surely you get payslips

Surely you get payslips

Is this a thread where we are adding our own examples and discussing them? :)

I'm 15 weeks and my managers know I'm pregnant - I feel since they have known, I have been passed over for everything, even minor things which is frustrating and disheartening.

It's very mild and dressed in a positive light of not giving me extra work. Last time I wasn't bothered but I enjoy the confidence I have in my role now with a few years experience behind me and it saddens me that I'm not even being considered for things that I later hear about and think "Oh, I could have done that". I understand that I will in a few months be leaving for the best part of a year but long term I am still an employee and would like to feel that my contributions are still valid.

Each time I went on maternity leave I was asked to have a brief handover period with a colleague to pass them all the info that they needed for the accounts that I managed (no problem with that). I was never contacted by my boss to see how I was etc during mat leave but was called (repeatedly, often when very inconvenient including when I when baby was ill) by the people 'looking after' my accounts to ask questions that they could have answered themselves with a bit of common sense, reading my handover notes or actually reading the account file. Still not a huge problem- I saw it as in my interests for the accounts to run smoothly ready for my return.

Then both times, I was asked to move from the accounts that I had spent years building up knowledge of to cover for a colleague who had left. Apparently this was for the greater good as my accounts were running smoothly (yes, thanks to me) so it would be better for me to be the one to pick up the leaving colleague's accounts. Both times this meant no handover, new industries/clients to get to know and basically putting my career development back.

On top of this, I was not invited to join several interesting and career boosting events as apparently I had enough on my plate with a young family and new accounts to get to know.

I think there can be discrimination during ML.

I also think some new parents (mums and dads) dont bother to find out what they need to know and make assumptions.

Nothing in the OP is discrimination thought.

Sorry but no I don't see either those things you have stated as discrimination.

I don't see this as discrimination, and employers are not compelled to grant flexi-working or part-time if it does not suit their business model. There's discrimination and there are people who think the employer has to do whatever they'd like to keep them.

I think if you challenged this, you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who'd call this discrimination

I'm not getting payslips. It's a pita, trying to work out how much money will land in my bank account, when I've got the first 10 days of the month full pay, then going down to smp, working out the tax etc whilst severely sleep deprived.

After weeks of trying to get hold of my boss I've now discovered that my team has been disbanded and my job has vanished. I go back in 3 weeks but no idea what to. I doubt any of my colleagues had to put up with this uncertainty.

I think in the OP's examples it is a case of poor HR management.

For further examples, I still struggle to see why people think they are discriminated against and not just a case of a business managing its people as it sees fit. Having a baby and taking maternity leave is a real privilege - when I go back I'm not expecting to have the red carpet laid out for me. If there is a reasonable change to my role or duties then so be it as the business will naturally change while I am gone (and it could well happen while I am there anyway!)