To make complaint against manager?

darcymae · 2023-09-22T21:33:41+00:00

I have been with my employer for two years now and have just joined a new team. I am also pregnant and due to go on Maternity Leave soon. During a team brief via Teams my manager announced my pregnancy and completely put me on the spot. I am a private person and have told few people and I feel really annoyed at that my Team Leader think she has a right to share such personal information with people I do not even know. I work part time and soon after a few people were asking about my pregnancy and asking if that is the reason I only work work part time to get the full rate Maternity Pay. I have had issues in my pregnancy and has been quite stressful and my Team Leader was asking me why I wanted to keep it a secret, none of her business at all! I am thinking of making a complaint against her to HR Am I being unreasonable?

Slothlikemum · 22/09/2023 22:35

Nope. Complain. Your personal information is yours to share. Totally inappropriate for her to do so.

Heyisforhorses · 22/09/2023 22:38

YABU, you joined a new team and you'll be leaving them soon, I assume this impacts their workload/dynamic? Did you tell your team leader to say nothing or just expect them to know?

Your team may be asking you questions to gauge why you joined a team to leave soon thereafter.

Congratulations on your pregnancy and i hope you're feeling better in it. Try not to to take offence, there is 99.9% chance it was nice news to share

Era · 22/09/2023 22:42

If you’re about to go on maternity then presumably it’s pretty obvious that you’re pregnant. Yabu

Original poster

darcymae · 22/09/2023 22:42

Heyisforhorses · 22/09/2023 22:38

YABU, you joined a new team and you'll be leaving them soon, I assume this impacts their workload/dynamic? Did you tell your team leader to say nothing or just expect them to know?

Your team may be asking you questions to gauge why you joined a team to leave soon thereafter.

Congratulations on your pregnancy and i hope you're feeling better in it. Try not to to take offence, there is 99.9% chance it was nice news to share

It was a case of being made redundant or to join a new team.

Going on Maternity Leave does not affect their workload or impact them in anyway.

I expected my Team Leader to not say anything and certainly not put me on my the spot during my first meeting with them.

And thank you for your kind words.

OP posts:

Original poster

darcymae · 22/09/2023 22:43

We all work remotely so nobody would of been the none wiser anyway.

OP posts:

JaneIntheBox · 22/09/2023 22:44

Surely your maternity pay is a proportion of your actual salary not the 'FT' equivalent?

Era · 22/09/2023 22:45

darcymae · 22/09/2023 22:43

We all work remotely so nobody would of been the none wiser anyway.

Well they would at the point at which you disappear..

WeWereInParis · 22/09/2023 22:45

due to go on Maternity Leave soon.

How soon is soon? Was she telling people in a way where they just needed to know the info eg "Darcymae will be off on maternity leave from mid-October and these are the plans in place to cover the workload"
Or was it more informal "Darcymae is joining the team, and she's pregnant!"

blueshoes · 22/09/2023 22:46

I work part time and soon after a few people were asking about my pregnancy and asking if that is the reason I only work work part time to get the full rate Maternity Pay.

What does this mean? If you work pt you get less maternity pay, I thought.

It is a technical breach of GDPR for your manager to disclose without your permission but if you are due to go on maternity leave soon, I assume you are already showing?

As a manager, she does have to put arrangements in place to cover your maternity leave so taking a 'I know my rights' stance and complaining about her to HR for disclosing a condition which to all intents and purposes will come out soon is a little short sighted and frankly a bit of an own goal. If I were her, I would be inconvenienced by someone joining the team who then quickly went on maternity leave. I know managers are not supposed to have feelings but you are only seeing things from your point of view, rather than a give and take situation.

Your complaining about her will just seal her judgment of you.

Hankunamatata · 22/09/2023 22:46

Your joining a new team and about to go on maternity leave. It would be very weird for you just to disappear. I don't think manager did anything wrong

JaneIntheBox · 22/09/2023 22:50

blueshoes · 22/09/2023 22:46

I work part time and soon after a few people were asking about my pregnancy and asking if that is the reason I only work work part time to get the full rate Maternity Pay.

What does this mean? If you work pt you get less maternity pay, I thought.

It is a technical breach of GDPR for your manager to disclose without your permission but if you are due to go on maternity leave soon, I assume you are already showing?

As a manager, she does have to put arrangements in place to cover your maternity leave so taking a 'I know my rights' stance and complaining about her to HR for disclosing a condition which to all intents and purposes will come out soon is a little short sighted and frankly a bit of an own goal. If I were her, I would be inconvenienced by someone joining the team who then quickly went on maternity leave. I know managers are not supposed to have feelings but you are only seeing things from your point of view, rather than a give and take situation.

Your complaining about her will just seal her judgment of you.

This OP!
Also given that your company has recently had redundancies I find it hard to believe that your mat leave will have zero impact on them. If your workload is important enough to have a maternity cover then surely that creates extra work in terms of the new person having to integrate into the team.
If not... and your work's just going to be left undone... I'd worry that your team gets hit by redundancies next.

The last thing I'd be worrying about is revealing news of something that was going to come out anyway...

blueshoes · 22/09/2023 22:51

So I read your updates.

If you all work remotely, then their questions are not in your face. You can choose to answer vaguely.

I just cannot understand of the mentality of someone joining a new team and then immediately complaining to HR about the manager. If nobody's work is affected by your joining the team, then maybe the team did not have a real need for you but made space for you to avoid a redundancy. The manager who has an extra person/absence to manage is now the bad guy. Right.

Original poster

darcymae · 22/09/2023 22:52

WeWereInParis · 22/09/2023 22:45

due to go on Maternity Leave soon.

How soon is soon? Was she telling people in a way where they just needed to know the info eg "Darcymae will be off on maternity leave from mid-October and these are the plans in place to cover the workload"
Or was it more informal "Darcymae is joining the team, and she's pregnant!"

It was a case of "darcymae isnt with us very long as she is due go to on Maternity Leave in a few weeks".

We work remotely taking inbound calls from insurance customers so me going on Maternity Leave wouldnt affect anyone's workload.

It is the company policy to earn a certain amount a week to be eligible for ML pay, I meet the threshold so will get the full and the occupational rate.

OP posts:

Islandme · 22/09/2023 22:55

My line manager disclosed my pregnancy, however I had been at the company for some time. I disclosed to my management early on in the pregnancy due to my job role being very active and H+S advised by my midwife - however they announced it. In my case I did go to HR for various reasons - (they asked me to resign to fill my role but made it known I would be welcome to reapply for another role in future) which was maternity discrimination , But the announcing of pregnancy was only part upheld as they didn't think it constituted a GDPR breach (a lengthy few paragraphs) deciphering that and that it would have been obvious and it was in the best interest of the team blah blah blah and the need to plan ahead etc. So that could go anywhere tbh it depends how legal will spin it. My maternity leave allowed me some breathing space where I was in my baby bubble .... returned to work and new line manager!! Give yourself a bit of breathing space is my best advice and let things unravel on their own. As long as you and bub are okay and you have a job to go back to try not to sweat the small stuff! What seems huge now will seem small when you have your lovely little baby

FitAt50 · 22/09/2023 22:56

You sound like a nightmare and I feel sorry for your poor manager. You have said you are going off on maternity leave soon and perhaps they were just trying to let the team know why and celebrate some nice news. Have a word with yourself.

blueshoes · 22/09/2023 22:57

A few weeks of answering unwanted questions remotely. Honestly, find something else to complain about. HR will look sideways at you. You will have lost credibility and be "that one".

I don't see your manager said anything wrong other than the bleeding obvious about why a new team member is here and then gone a few weeks later.

blueshoes · 22/09/2023 22:59

So true about not sweating the small stuff. Choose your battles. One day you are going to need the manager to be on your side.

JaneIntheBox · 22/09/2023 23:01

darcymae · 22/09/2023 22:52

It was a case of "darcymae isnt with us very long as she is due go to on Maternity Leave in a few weeks".

We work remotely taking inbound calls from insurance customers so me going on Maternity Leave wouldnt affect anyone's workload.

It is the company policy to earn a certain amount a week to be eligible for ML pay, I meet the threshold so will get the full and the occupational rate.

Show quote history

YABU.
Well if you're not there the rest have to handle the calls that should have gone to you. Therefore, they'll have a heavier workload?
It's rude of people to presume your reason for working and if you have written proof of that you should send to HR.
But your manager announcing pregnancy doesn't look like an issue.

And quite honestly you are lucky not to be made redundant, while pregnant (maybe they didn't want to anyway 'cos you'd take them to tribunal even though your pregnancy isn't the reason), it looks like your role isn't even needed because your absence doesn't impact other people's workloads according to you so it looks like the role was created just to keep you. I'd be grateful I still had a job, was getting full entitled mat pay and not rock the boat personally.

Or you might find in the next round of redundancies you might just be let go... as you're not actually needed...

Hankunamatata · 22/09/2023 23:03

Read update. You are being totally unreasonable

blueshoes · 22/09/2023 23:05

It is not true you cannot make a pregnant woman redundant. Maybe they did not want the hassle. But yes, OP is lucky to get full maternity pay. Doubt she'd be working much these last few weeks either.

Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.

ActDottie · 22/09/2023 23:05

darcymae · 22/09/2023 22:52

It was a case of "darcymae isnt with us very long as she is due go to on Maternity Leave in a few weeks".

We work remotely taking inbound calls from insurance customers so me going on Maternity Leave wouldnt affect anyone's workload.

It is the company policy to earn a certain amount a week to be eligible for ML pay, I meet the threshold so will get the full and the occupational rate.

Show quote history

If you’re due to go on Mat leave in a few weeks then I think it was fine for her to say this. I told my team at 14 weeks as I had been off quite a lot with morning sickness.

Should add I literally joined a new team and found out i was pregnant. Despite not knowing the team that well I knew I needed to let the team know why I was off so much and also to expect me to be off for nine months next year - also just general courtesy as the team would be down one and I want to come back to the team on good terms not having just vanished unexpectedly for nine months!!

You missing will also increase their workload as it sounds like there will be one less person to take calls.

JaneIntheBox · 22/09/2023 23:09

blueshoes · 22/09/2023 23:05

It is not true you cannot make a pregnant woman redundant. Maybe they did not want the hassle. But yes, OP is lucky to get full maternity pay. Doubt she'd be working much these last few weeks either.

Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.

You're repeating exactly what I said - which is that OP would take them to tribunal, even though her pregnancy wasn't the reason for being made redundant (in any case a role not a person is made redundant). Hence, they just put her onto another team. I never said you can't make a pregnant woman redundant??

I'll bet this isn't the first time OP has run to HR for a minor issue and has form...

blueshoes · 22/09/2023 23:13

It is not true you cannot make a pregnant woman redundant.

Just a general statement because of the usual misconception that pregnancy is some kind of forcefield against redundancy. We are violently agreeing. Hope that is ok with you.

Gazelda · 22/09/2023 23:14

OP, what,would you want the outcome to be if you complained to HR?

I imagine it would result in your manager being given extra training and a ticking off. Possibly made to apologise to you. She won't get sacked. You won't be compensated.

So is it really worth the hassle and bad rep?

Maybe you should approach your manager directly and say that you were caught off guard when she disclosed your pregnancy to the team. Explain how uncomfortable you felt. If she's decent, she'll apologise for putting you in that position. Then you'll both move on. Wouldn't that be a better outcome?

LemonQuiche · 22/09/2023 23:14

I’m quite private too, so I kind of understand where you’re coming from. However, I’m not sure what you hope to achieve by going to HR about it? What action do you want them to take?