Pregnant, full time work, and probation period

[kat4321]

So I'm 16 weeks pregnant, and not told my work yet as I've been on a probation period for 6 months. The end date was 1st October. I'd had 3 sick days in that period, one due to pregnancy sickness (that I couldn't tell them about) and a 4th sick day due to a bad cold during my pregnancy on the 2nd of October, the date after the probation end date!

So I had a meeting yesterday and got told that due to having 4 sick days in my probation period it's been extended 6 weeks, which I found unfair and confusing but didn't speak up at the time. As the 4th day was technically past my probation.

I am now even more afraid of telling them about the pregnancy and was planning on doing it this week after the probation ended. I don't know if I can hide it another 6 weeks due to my growing belly, but don't want to get sacked either if I do tell them as they could pluck up some other reason for doing so

Sorry if this is just a rant and confusing, but I'm unsure if I should just tell them or buy even baggier clothes for the next 6 weeks if possible

Even on probation you are entitled to paid time off for antenatal appointments.
You need to tell them you are pregnant so they can do the necessary risk assessments.
They would be silly to let you go on probation as a pregnant woman could claim she was let go because of pregnancy and that's a whole different subject and for any company can be challenging as pregnant woman can claim discrimination and no one really in all honesty wants that to happen. If it were the case you were let go because of pregnancy I'd fight it. You have so many rights as a pregnant lady look on the gov website.

Agree with pp. You need to tell them you're pregnant as any pregnancy related illness legally need to be treated differently as they fall under disability discrimination law. Contact your trade union for further advice.

Second that! You are protected as a pregnant employee regardless of probation! I would tell them because it will actually probably make things easier on you, and they will find out soon anyway!

I would tell them. You might well need another day off and that could be an excuse/reason to let you go. If you work with other women I'd say at least one has guessed already tbh.

OP has only said one sickness day was to do with her pregnancy. She isn't protected from absolutely everything due to being pg, just from discrimination based on her pregnancy.

I told my employer yesterday I was pregnant then 6 hours later they let me go saying it was due to budget cuts

Union or acas, mummylannie

Out of interest, why have you withheld the truth from your employers in your probation period? This surely will be held in dim view.

4 days off sick is a lot if only one was even to do with pregnancy.

I don't tell my employers when I have my period. I don't tell them when I have a cold. I don't even have to tell them if I became disabled, though might be in my interests to do so. And no one has to tell their employer about a pregnancy until (around) 22 weeks I believe.
Billieilish are you guilty of oversharing with your employer perhaps?

3 days non pregnancy sickness in six months is a lot. Am surprised they kept you on at all. A cold isn’t really a reason to be off sick.

They can't extend your probation unilaterally unless your contract explicitly allows for that. However too late now as to bring that up would be pointless as their response now would just be that you agreed to it, so it wasn't unilateral.

I'd speak to your union - if you're not in one, join one right now. If your union advise to tell them of pregnancy then go for it. Not sure what id do in your situation. Is it your first? I reckon I could have hid it for another 6 weeks in your position if I had to as I didn't have a big bump. I had to tell my employers when I was only 7 weeks pregnant because I got HG and had to get signed off work for about 3 months and then phased return for a few weeks. I was also in my probation. They extended it for 3 months which they weren't really entitled to do ( see above) but I decided not to argue about that as wasn't worth the bad feeling. I think they would have liked to have gotten rid of me but were too frightened to do that as it would have been blatant discrimination which I would have taken action about! Anyway it's almost 2 years ago now since I went on that sick leave and I've been back at work since the spring after mat leave and recently had a promotion.

I'm really sorry to hear you are going through this kat4321 Pregnancy is a protected characteristic, so it would be in your best interests to tell them - they couldn't (or shouldn't) discriminate against time off related to your pregnancy. Whether that's being ill due to being pregnant, or attending appointments. Maternity-related absense is usually coded differently on a HR system i.e. they shouldn't count those days as regular "sick days". I know there's plenty of stories out there of people telling their employer they are pregnant, to then be told they haven't passed their probation or were being let go (and the employers try to say its not pregnancy-related ). But if you look at it from their perspective, they just think you are having random days off, they aren't aware of this big thing going on in your life right now.

I am just over 10 weeks, was going to tell my employer after the 12-week scan (luckily i've had no time off bar an appointment this morning that I just put in my calendar as a GP appointment) but now I have 2 appointments one day after the other in 2 weeks time which will mean i'm offline for 2 mornings in a row -- I had a 9am appointment today, got seen 50 minutes late, and there wasn't enough midwives on shift to complete my booking-in...hence the extra appointment I hadn't vouched on coming my way. So I will tell them that week the reason i'll be out of the office then.

I'm so frustrated for you Mummylanie3. Christ its 2019, employers need to step up! How long had you been working there?

Panda If you have sick days for a cold, period, disability, pregnancy related appts, I think you'll find it would be a bit odd to just 'phone up and say 'I'm not coming in today and it's my business why, not yours, you just keep paying me'

I work for myself thanks.

Booking 3 days off sick (one the very day after probation was due to end) looks very bad indeed. None of these were due to pregnancy. They obviously seem to think so too as they have extended probation period and I suspect are unhappy with the OP.

In short, foolish to not tell them you're pregnant. Be straight, show good faith.

You do not need to tell them you are pregnant until much later on - check your T&Cs.

That being said, I wouldn’t want to work somewhere that I couldn’t feel confident would treat me fairly. They can’t legally sack you for being pregnant. If it’s a big company you should be pretty safe.

I work in a call centre full time, 8 hours of speaking to customers all day long coughing, sneezing, spluttering over the phone isn't ideal

Thank you all for replies, I'll have a good read through them all x

Mummylanie3 - As an HR professional, I would advise you to take legal advice. Without knowing the details this sounds like unfair dismissal.

You don't have to tell your employer you're pregnant until later on but if it is having an effect on your health /work it is in your interest to disclose it