When it all goes wrong – Discrimination at Work

We all know that being a working parent is hard, but what about when your employer makes it harder, if not bloody impossible for you to succeed all because you’re a parent, specifically a working mum? As a HR professional I’d like to say that this doesn’t happen in today’s society, but sadly that’s not the case and there are all too many stories that prove it.

With International Women’s Day coming up on the 8th March it is clear that the progress that has been made with regards to equality in the workplace is vast. However statistics show that it’s still not enough. Whether it’s trying to dismiss you because you are pregnant or replacing you whilst you are on maternity leave, it’s a sad fact that recent stats suggest that nearly half of working mums feel discriminated against by their employers, either during their pregnancy or upon their return to work.

There are many reasons why employers treat mothers or mothers to be differently in the workplace. Maybe it’s because your boss’s wife was a stay at home mum who kept the house immaculatly clean and made banana bread and home baked focaccia every day and he can’t see why you would even dream of coming back to work. Maybe it’s because your company are worried about health and safety implications of having a pregnant staff member and don’t want to land themselves in hot water. Maybe it’s because one of your team members have complained that you having time off to look after your poorly child is having a negative impact on the team (erm hello, clearing up a 3 year old’s vomit in 20 minute intervals throughout the day isn’t having a great impact on me either mate). Whatever the reason, discrimination against women in the workplace happens.

But that doesn’t mean that it is something that we should accept. Hell to the no.

The Facts

Knowledge is power as they say, so here are some of the key facts on your rights and what exactly constitutes as discrimination.

You cannot be penalised for absence that relates to your pregnancy

Pregnancy related sickness cannot be used against you or used as a reason for disciplinary action. For more information on your rights as a pregnant worker, see my previous post on this here.

You have the right to return to the same terms and conditions following your maternity leave

If you return to work within the first 6 months of your maternity leave (known as Ordinary Maternity Leave) you are entitled to return to the same job (as well as the same terms and conditions etc.) If you return to work in the following 6 months (Additional Maternity Leave) you are entitled to return to the same job, unless your employer can prove that it is not reasonably practical for this to happen, in which case you must be offered a suitable alternative. See my previous post on this here.

You are allowed time off to care for dependants

Dependants can include your spouse, partner, child, grandchild, parent or otherwise, someone who relies on you for care (although I think your family Hamster might be pushing it). As an employee you are allowed a reasonable amount of time off to deal with an emergency situation involving dependants. Sadly this doesn’t extend to School plays and those bloody middle of the week Open Days (I’m still not over this one clearly – see my previous post featuring my Open Day fail here) but a breakdown in childcare arrangements do count. Your employer must not treat you unfairly for taking this time off otherwise it could be classed as discrimination.

Your employer must handle all flexible working requests in a reasonable manner

This means that they cannot turn down your request simply because they don’t like the idea of you sprinting out of the door early to pick up your children- there must be a solid business reason for the refusal. In addition, your employer cannot force you to change your working hours without your consent, unless your contract explicitly states that your working hours may be changed from time to time (however even then they are on dodgy ground).

It is illegal for your employer to pay you less than a man doing the same job

You’re working your ass off being the best employee you can be and then legging it home to make dinner time crumpets for the kids (it’s fine, they had a hot meal at school and errr crumpets are hot anyway right?) and then you get wind that Gloaty Glenn who has the same job title as you gets paid more. What gives?! Unfortunately this is too often the case (you must have seen the BBC equal pay scandal) however, the fact of the matter is, it is discrimination for an employer to pay a woman less for doing the same or similar work to a man. With new laws now in place meaning that large companies have to report on the gap in pay between genders, hopefully some inroads will be made here but the issue is still a big one.

What to do if you are being treated unfairly

Ok great, so you’re are armed with the facts but your employer is still making your life a living hell- what do you do next?

Have a word

I realise that in some cases, this is easier said than done, especially if the discrimination you are faced with is by your manager or worse the company director. However I would always suggest that if you can, this would be the first step to try and navigate. Obviously the main reason being that the situation may well be resolved in this manner. The offending person may not have realised the negative impact their behaviour was having on you – you may even get an apology – happy days!

Raise a Grievance

Your little chat fell of deaf ears – its time to go formal. Raising a grievance means your employer must go through a proper process and investigate the matter. Most employers will have a policy in place outlining their procedures, but if not its worth checking out the ACAS guidance on this here. Obviously if all goes to plan your grievance will be upheld and the discrimination acknowledged and put a stop to. However even if not, an employment tribunal (if it gets that far- hopefully not!) will always look to see whether you’ve taken all possible steps to try and resolve the matter, so even if the outcome to your grievance has not gone in your favour, going through the process may be helpful to you later on. You shouldn’t be victimised by your employer for raising a grievance as this would count as discrimination. Obviously.

Citizens Advice Bureau

It was many years before I actually realised that the CAB offered more than just maps of the local area and advice on what is on this week at the town hall. Turns out they actually offer employment advice too (who knew?) You can find a link to their website here, or alternatively you can give them a call to get some advice over the phone.

Seek Legal Advice

Sounds expensive and it can be. However most employment solicitors will offer at least a 30 minute phone call free of charge. In that time they should be able to assess whether you are actually being discriminated against or whether the employer is acting appropriately, as well as offer you some basic advice.

ACAS

ACAS have a free helpline available to employees (and employers) on all aspects of employment law. Although they cannot advise you on what to do, they can give you an idea of whether your particular situation is classed as discrimination. There is also heaps of information available on their website.

So now you have the information, there’s very little chance of you being discriminated against right? Er no. Sadly not. But hopefully this post will help you to understand not only what constitutes as discrimination, but also, what the hell to do about it. The fact of the matter is though that speaking out against employers isn’t easy, especially when we sorta need to work to feed the kids and all that. What is clear though is that social media has been a crucial platform in helping to press forwards with gender parity.

There are many influencers running amazing campaigns to get the issue in the spotlight and employers to sit up and take note. If you are not already doing so, it’s is definitely worth giving @pregnant_then_screwed a follow on Instagram for some very interesting stories as well as excellent advice. She also has a helpline offering legal advice if you think you are being discriminated against and don’t know what to do next.

Additionally, if there is anything I haven’t covered or you would like further information on, please do let me know via the contact form.

Right, I’m off to buy some sort of heavily emblazoned, feminist slogan T-shirt for International Women’s Day this week…

Kayleigh x

Returning to Work – Childcare Considerations

A couple of weeks in and it’s already started.

‘Why didn’t you come to my Open Day today Mummy??’

‘Ummmm… Open Day?’

‘Yes, my Open Day at School, I got all my books out ready to show you but nobody came…’

Shit. Shit shit shit. How could I have forgotten that? I’d even put it on the calendar. I’ve been back at work for two weeks and already I’m dropping balls.

The thing you find when you have three kids is that everyone (and I mean everyone) assumes you won’t be returning to work. That once you have child number three, working simply becomes an unnecessary luxury. Turns out though, that the mortgage payments don’t stop because Nationwide take pity on your poor child beaten soul (I mean, I haven’t worked my way through the whole list of lenders- you never know, there may be one with tiptop family values?!)

Now don’t get me wrong, I realise in many situations, putting three children into childcare is just not worth the financial output. But if like us you have big bills and kind (albeit slightly weary) Grandparents offering free (but oh so appreciated mum, if you are reading this) childcare, then working is the only option. So yes Sandra in accounts, I am back and yes I do realise that they are only young once and no I know I won’t get this time back but… I sorta would like to feed my kids.

But the fact that the choice is made for me doesn’t make it any easier. Walking into work a couple of weeks ago, I felt like someone had ripped my insides out. I was longing to be at home listening to baby giggles, doing the school run, screw it, even wiping the 3 year old’s bum; I just wanted to go back to being mummy all day.

I’m going to be honest, day one was tough. Trying to get my head back into ‘work mode’ whilst simultaneously wondering whether the baby had napped long enough for Nanna, if the 3 year old was enjoying her second day at her new pre school (god bless those 30 free hours) and whether I’d remembered a snack for the eldest’s after school club, was all a bit overwhelming. But it did get easier. Eating lunch in the canteen I actually got to have a WHOLE CONVERSATION. People actually listened to me and I even finished my sentences. I also came away without so much as a splash of food on my dress. WINNING!

Also the big one for me is that now I’m earning some actual money again I might be able treat the kids every now and then as let’s be honest, statutory maternity pay ain’t pretty. That being said, obviously I’m back to forking out on childcare. Which, as it turns out, hasn’t got any cheaper. I’ve been in the childcare game for a while now (3 kids here remember?!) and in that time there have been some changes to the options available when it comes to childcare assistance for working parents.

Childcare Vouchers

What are they?

Childcare Vouchers can be used to pay for participating nurseries and childminders as well as for holiday clubs for older children. They are usually offered as a salary sacrifice scheme; the voucher amount is deducted from your gross pay rather than your net pay, meaning you do not pay tax or NI on them. However there are some generous employers who will offer them in addition to normal pay.

The amount you are entitled to will depend on your earnings. The table below gives an outline of the amount of vouchers you will be able to take and the annual savings that can be made:

	Weekly	Monthly	Annual savings
Basic rate taxpayers	£55	£243	£933
Higher rate taxpayers	£28	£124	£623
Additional rate taxpayers	£25	£110	£623

Also, if your partner’s employer offers the vouchers you will be able to make even more savings.

Availability

Not all employers offer them unfortunately so check with your HR department, if you have one. In my experience, the smaller the company, the less likely it is that this is something they will be offering, but it’s always worth an ask.

Childcare vouchers are currently being phased out by the Government in favour of the new Tax Free Childcare. The scheme will no longer be open to new applicants after the 6 April 2018 however if you already pay into a childcare voucher/ salary sacrifice scheme; you will be able to continue doing so. If you are going back to work imminently though, it still might be worth checking it out (err pretty sharpish ideally!)

Tax Free Childcare

What is it?

Pretty much what it says on the tin – tax free childcare. Basically, you open an online account and for every 80p you pay in, the government will pay in 20p (essentially they are paying in the amount equivalent to the tax rate that most people pay – 20%.) You can get up to £2000 government help each year (or £4000 for a disabled child). So all in all, not too shabby.

Availability

The scheme is currently available to all parents with children under the age of 12 (or 17 for disabled children). To qualify you need to be earning at least £120 a week but no more than £100,000 a year.

Childcare Vouchers vs Tax Free Childcare: Which is right for me?

What works for you as a family can depend on various factors. As a general rule of thumb, tax free childcare is better if a family’s cost is over £9,330 for a basic rate tax payer and £6,252 for a higher rate tax payer. However it is definitely worth doing a comparison to see which works best for you. You can find a handy little table to help you here.

Free hours entitlement for 3 and 4 year olds

Turns out that yes, this really can be as good as its sounds. When they hit the age of 3 (ok so its actually ‘the term after they turn 3’ – slightly annoying if like me you have Spring born children who popped into the world at the very start of the Easter term – roll on September!) all children are entitled to 15 gloriously free hours of childcare. Now there is a slight catch here – the 15 hours must be with an approved childcare provider and are only based on term time weeks, so if like most of us poor souls, you are contracted to work full year then this will work out to be around 11 hours per week – but will still save you a fair bit.

Free hours for 2 year olds

If you qualify for certain benefits, you may be entitled to receive these free hours when your child hits 2 (ok, ok, I mean the term after they turn 2). You can check whether you qualify to receive these free hours for your 2 year old here.

30 Free hours

This was rolled out nationwide in September 2017, for children with parents that both work at least 16 hours per week and earn over £120 per week. The system is new and to be honest; slightly clunky. You have to sign up to the ‘Government Gateway’ and then complete a fairly long winded form (be prepared to have your passport and NI number to hand) for the free hours – you will then be given a code to give to your childcare provider. You then need to reconfirm your details before the end of each term – although it turns out this process is a lot simpler (providing you can find your long ID number which you will have written down on a scrap of paper and thrown in the ‘messy drawer’, never to be seen again. Or maybe that’s just me…)

So hopefully that covers it. Now you all you need to worry about is fighting the other parents to the death to get your child an actual place in nursery….

Kayleigh x

*you can get 30 free hours as well as claiming tax free childcare or childcare vouchers, but you wont be eligible if you or your partner earn over £100,000 per year (lucky you!)