Dismissed while pregnant - employer using an old resignation letter

[Kipdfgy]

Hi all,
I’m 11 weeks pregnant and really shaken by what's just happened at work. I’ve been with the company (a small family-run business) for 4 years in a managerial role. After I told them about my pregnancy, they immediately started pressuring me to return just 2 months after giving birth and to go full-time by April 2026. They also asked me to arrange all antenatal appointments on specific days to “minimise disruption,” even though these are set by the NHS.

Earlier this week, after another day of being criticised and overhearing my boss complain about me on the phone to my colleague (again! FYI they have been keeping a secret document of all my mistakes, which I found out about. They have never formally addressed these with me), I had an emotional outburst and left work early. In the heat of the moment I said I was resigning and didn’t hand anything formal in. But later that day, I got an email saying they were “accepting” a resignation letter I’d submitted and withdrawn back in 2024 — over a year ago! I have queried this and said I haven’t resigned and it’s unlawful to use and old document that was withdrawn as I continued working. They won’t accept they are wrong.

I feel like they’ve used this as an excuse to get rid of me and avoid maternity pay. I’ve never been disciplined, I met all my targets, and I feel like this is discrimination. I’m speaking with ACAS, but I just feel lost, angry and quite emotional right now.

Has anyone been through anything like this? Any advice or solidarity would really help.
Thanks so much.

What utter bollocks you're talking.

Have you got a copy of this document they kept on you? I’d argue it was unfair dismissal and you felt bullied to leave since they found out you were pregnant.

100% speak to ACAS and Pregnant then Screwed. Also talk to a solicitor.

But they haven’t sacked her because she’s pregnant, she resigned (again) and they accepted.

It’s the real world.

Get legal advice and pursue a settlement, probably your best option.

It’s not that simple. It’s the Employment Tribunal who ultimately decide whether a claim proceeds to a hearing. The OP needs to notify ACAS to arrange early conciliation. If that doesn't resolve the issue, ACAS issues a certificate allowing a tribunal claim. But it has to have foundation. As she verbally resigned I think she would be better pursuing constructive dismissal claim - the way she was treated after disclosing her pregnancy was discriminatory and forced her into an untenable situation and she resigned as a result. Pregnancy is a protected characteristic and what the employer was proposing was very questionable, so she may have a good case.

The employer has implied there are issues with OP’s work - nothing has been said and no PIPs put in place. The fact that she resigned and retracted it at their request last year is irrelevant. They can’t use an old resignation letter. And the verbal resignation in the heat of the moment is questionable.

Lawyer up.

Make sure you tell your solicitor everything: how they've been pressuring you on when to return/go full-time, about your antenatal appointments, about your boss complaining about you but never raising issues with you, about how you said you were leaving while under emotional stress, and definitely about them 'accepting' your old resignation letter.

To get a settlement, you need a lot of dirt on them and how they’ve handled this.

This dossier they have on you is kind of redundant - they haven’t raised it with you so how were you meant to (allegedly) improve? Do you have mid and year end reviews? Any issues ever raised there or no complaints? Have your received performance related bonuses recently? Any emails saying “great job!” or praise?

You need to build a picture that they’ve suddenly come up with all these issues BECAUSE they know you’re pregnant and want you, unfairly, gone.

I think this is good advice.

You then build in the previous resignation as evidence of a workplace that put you under immense pressure, it was all too much, straw that broke the camel’s back etc. You felt bullied and now this dossier furthers that.

Is there any HR?

For all the posters saying you resigned and you’re wrong and all the rest of it, ignore. They don’t know the workplace that you do know so well and, moreover, you’re 11 weeks pregnant and need to fight this.

You resigned once by letter and once vocally - you don’t have a future there whatever

you could force them through the motions but they won’t want someone so able to fly of the handle

It might be in your world but it says a lot about you.
It's not my experience of the working world.

Are you properly qualified to give this advice?

Ok.

Now back to helping the 11 weeks pregnant OP facing an imminent cashflow problem.

. 'After I told them about my pregnancy, they immediately started pressuring me to return just 2 months '

See a lawyer they cannot do this. Also looks like constructive dismissal.

You poor thing! I think this will very much depend on the specifics, yes a verbal resignation is valid but also an employer must be "reasonable" and as a result, if it was clearly not your calm state of mind resigning, and if you continued to act as an employee its likely itd be deemed not to have been a reaignation. Stay very calm, write everything down exactly as it happened with dates so you're 100% on top of the full pixture when you speak to acas and an employment lawyer (see if you can do this via pregnant and screwed or similar). I would also write an email to them stating "to be clear, I appreciate that I made an emotional and throwaway comment (as you're aware I'm pregnant and work has been stressful recently hence my emotions are high) but I categorically have not resigned, at no point did i formally resign, state I was resigning or write an email or letter resigning yesterday/date of xyz 2025. You referred me to a letter dated 2024 when we discussed my resignation and the letter was immediately retracted in 2024, therefore that letter is irrelevant to the current situation. I am unsure why you are under the assumption I have resigned based on an emotional comment, but I have not, and am assuming unless told otherwise that I am still employed and am, as ive always been, available for work" - hopefully you also said similar when they told you they thought you'd resigned, and hopefully you've been available for work?
Wait for them to email back.
I would then call Acas with your full story, I'd be pushing for unfair dismissal/constructive dismissal and also discrimination due to pregnancy and emotional stress caused by this. Definitely labour the point that you're pregnant and work has been causing you stress anyway, hence the emotional comment.

Whilst technically a verbal resignation is valid, and there's no legal requirement for a cooling off period, a tribunal would look at what "a reasonable" employer would understand by the situation, if you genuinely made a throwaway and clearly emotional comment under stress that's not reasonable. If you calmly stated that you were resigning and wouldn't be in the next day, and then didn't turn up for work - it would be reasonable to assume you've resigned verbally.
Good luck, and honestly they sound awful and like you're not a good fit, so regardless of the outcome I'd find a new employer once your maternity leave is done (remember you can claim maternity allowance - can't remember the specifics but check it if they're refusing your mat pay)

If you have any written/emailed evidence of the following, make sure you email it to your personal email address or take the written paper home:

• asking you to return after two months
• dictating your antenatal appointment dates
• Asking you to withdraw your resignation / asking you not to resign
• Your original resignation, particularly if it says I resign with effect from [date] or I give x months' notice.
• Your email / letter withdrawing your resignation.

This is evidence of how they've treated you. Do an SAR. It's all about negotiation - you won't start action if they settle.

Yeah, they can’t use the old letter, but they may be able to hold you to the spoken declaration.

Good points from @FlowerUser, but please don’t email it to your personal. That might well flout their IT policy and you need to be whiter than white. You also don’t want them to know what cards you hold, so take pictures of the screen with your phone. Be sure to capture the dates and timestamps of emails or minutes etc, recipients, attendees etc

Please also do not say to them anything along the lines of ”whilst I may have verbally resigned that was hear of the moment”. That’s an admission that doesn’t go in your favour. Unless you have to say it, shut up!

If you are going to email them, it’s essentially with your demands and a threat with legal grounds.

So you had an 'emotional outburst' and resigned, stormed out of work, have ongoing drama with the other staff and also have form for doing this before in the past?

Surely you can be fired for your 'emotional outbursts', for leaving and not doing your work and/or your ongoing issues and drama with your boss and other colleagues. You have kind of painted yourself like a nightmare employee full of drama and the pregnancy isn't any part of whats going on. Its just being used as more manipulative and dramatic clickbait.

You resigned and they accepted it, just because you changed your mind and they let you withdraw it before doesn't mean you can keep doing it. Faux ultimatums you then take back, storming out of work, having outburst at other workers etc... are not acceptable behaviors that have to be pandered too because you are 'pregnant'.

I agree with others that the old resignation was withdrawn and even if you didn’t have a written record the fact that they kept paying you to turn up to work shows your contract of employment continued on the same terms. Your initial resignation was superseded by the ongoing action of the company in continuing to treat you as an employee.

You need proper advice on what you do next so I would speak to ACAS and Pregnant the Screwed to work out your next steps.

I think for constructive dismissal the Op would have needed to have gone through the grievance procedure first.
That's what ACAS said when I spoke to them a couple of years ago.

You say that you were being micromanaged etc, did you officially report this - to management, supervisor, keep a diary of events ? If this went un reported, then there is no evidence to support your reasons for resignation. Did things change/improve ? I would definatley speak to ACAS - it could be discrimination, if the reason you were being asked or told to leave was due to being pregnant, being pregnant - you are a protected characteristic within the discrimination act.
Good luck, hope ACAS help.

Bollocks. I never claimed to be a lawyer but I can spot a poster who also isn't one a mile off. And that includes anyone who says that something is "pretty straight forward constructive dismissal" (there is no such thing - they are one of the hardest cases to win) based on absolutely nothing except advice to tell a lie.

BTW - on some of your other advice - it's an application for conciliation via ACAS, not for reconciliation (that's what marriage guidance does 😁). And that isn't how it works - you tell ACAS you want to make a tribunal claim, they will offer you the opportunity to ask for early conciliation, which the employer can refuse.

If you keep resigning it's obvious eventually they will get fed up of it and accept it. They don't sound a good employer though. You might be happier somewhere else.

This isn’t on the topic at hand totally, but in case you don’t know, you will be eligible for maternity allowance for 9months which apart from the first 6 weeks is the same pay as SMP.