Worker whose pregnancy was called a ‘problem’ gets €15,000

A hotel worker, who was informed by a boss that her pregnancy was seen as a “problem”, has been awarded €15,000 in compensation.

The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) ordered the hotel to pay the award after the lone parent was successful in a pregnancy discrimination case.

In its ruling, the WRC adjudication officer stated that the hotel worker “experienced discrimination across a number of her conditions of employment”, and there was “no doubt that such discrimination would not have occurred had her employer not been made aware of her pregnancy”.

In the case, the hotel worker said she had been working in the hotel’s café but once her employer “discovered that she was pregnant, far from eliminating any risks posed to her, it increased the risks by moving her to the wedding venue and imposing far heavier duties upon her”.

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The employee said she hurt herself while working at the wedding venue and subsequently went to hospital, which led to her employment being summarily suspended.

Detailing the sequence of events, the employee said she had initially worked on the tills, making coffees, serving food and taking orders in the hotel café.

In June 2016, she informed her immediate boss that she was pregnant and was subsequently told by the same overseer that the operations manager wished to discuss the “problem” with her.

The worker said she was very upset at her pregnancy being described as a “problem”.

On August 10th, two months after informing her employers that she was pregnant, she was transferred from the café to setting up tables at the weddings venue.

Heavy lifting

As her pregnancy progressed, she asked to be returned to her role in the café, or to be give a job with lighter duties which did not involve heavy lifting, but these requests were refused.

She said the hotel - which was unnamed in the WRC ruling - was one of the country’s leading wedding venues, operating a bar and a restaurant and oyster bar which could hold 100 people, a function room that could cater for 180 guests, 40 bedrooms, a number of houses on the grounds, three apartments, a café, and a separate cookery school.

In these circumstances, she submitted, the hotel could have reasonably found lighter duties for her when she was pregnant.

The woman had her baby daughter in December 2016 and returned to work at the hotel in March 2017.

She said that since her return, and since it became known that she had made a complaint to the WRC, the worker had felt ostracised at work and penalised for making a claim.

However, the adjudication officer stated that there was no evidence presented by the worker with regard to how she was treated less favourably to other employees over her working hours upon her return to work.

The hotel disputed the woman’s entire claim and denied discrimination.

In its findings, the WRC adjudication officer found that it was clear that the worker was moved to different work after she had reported she was pregnant.

The officer stated that it is also clear that this work involved duties which required more physical activity, and where the hotel worker was asked to complete this work without a thorough and suitable health and safety risk assessment.