Case Study:
To hire or not to hire?
Must an employer hire a replacement for her maternity leave secretary, when the potential new start declares that she too is pregnant?
Deirdre, the Managing Director?s indispensable PA has announced that she is pregnant. She will very shortly be leaving on maternity leave and is likely to be absent for a year. The MD advertises for a temporary replacement. Of all the CVs received, Maggie?s is the best. She is invited in for an interview, during which she advises that she herself is six weeks? pregnant. Must she be offered the post?
Answer:
The simple answer here is yes. The European Court of Justice has ruled that the refusal to employ a woman because she is pregnant constitutes unlawful discrimination, even if that woman is being taken on for a fixed term contract, and due to her pregnancy is likely to be unable to work for the majority of that fixed term.
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