I am so incredibly upset at the moment. Basically I'm about to go off on my 3rd maternity leave and things have got so bad at work that I don't think I can return (and I would like to).
Everything was fine when I came back from mat leave no 2 in November 2011 until i got pregnant again and all my work dried up (I am client facing so some of this is understandable since they don't wish me to build a relationship then bugger off in a few months time). My team leader has been completely unsupportive (she is the same level of me, same experience, but company policy is to appoint a team leader who may well end up leading their peers - weird, I know) and has got progressively worse. She has told me that the fact I have little work is my own fault (it is up to her to allocate work) and that senior people in the office have no faith in my quality of my work. I have defended myself about this and I have stated I disagree with her comments. I even got external positive feedback from the one client I am actively involved. I also got questions from her about if I was planning to return from maternity leave (can she ask me this??) and how long would I take off if I did return.
She is refusing to authorise my holiday prior to mat leave - I am due to finish TODAY (I am 38 weeks pregnant) and want take 2 weeks holiday (to help use it up) prior to starting mat leave. (She has gone to HR to find out my entitlement since my last mat leave, etc. etc. I think she think I'm doing something naughty and doesn't understand that you accrue bH over mat leave hence the amount of leave I have accumulated but I assure you everything is above board).
But the thing that has really upsetting me is about her comments about my performance. I have completed a form to summarise my own performance to-date to help with the year end performance review (not due until November). I was happy to do this and included the +ve client feedback (why not?). She has said that she can't support my form as it stands since it doesn't reflect the fact that I'm basically crap (my words, not hers, but that's the gist). I've refused to change it (and I'm not exactly singing my own praises on this bloody form, it is extremely bland, especially given I've done little all year). I have just received an e-mail from her about how senior people have no faith in my performance, the fact that I have little work is my own fault and that she will have to re-consider me working from home one day a week when I return from work (she wasn't involved in this decision and there are other people within the office who work from home).
I feel bullied, but maybe I'm just being sensitive what with my pregnancy, etc, also not sure if some of this is my own fault, but I simply feel that the whole situation is so sour that I can't possibly return.