The crime of maternity: when companies make us pay for our pregnancies

6 years ago I announced my first pregnancy to my superior. Our professional relationship, which until then had been very good, immediately turned into a nightmare: incessant criticism of my work, humiliation in front of colleagues, pressures via email and telephone, failure to respect my work stoppage … it took some time to understand that, like 1 in 4 women, I have been the victim of discrimination or harassment in the workplace, due to my motherhood[1]. Why is this destructive pattern so common? How to behave when you are a victim?

What is the offense of maternity?

The offense of motherhood is the audacity of wanting to become a mother when a woman should obviously devote her life to her job! In any case, that’s more or less what some managers seem to think. Refusal to hire a pregnant woman – or even a woman who could become pregnant -, harassment during pregnancy, dismissal on returning from maternity leave, pressure on a person undergoing MAP, the offense of maternity can take many forms.

Laura suffered harassment from her employer during her third pregnancy. Already used to playing with labor law, her superior took a new step after the announcement of her pregnancy.

“I asked him if I could benefit from an agreement on working hours, he refused and, on the contrary, he changed my hours to make me finish even later, supporting “Here I am the boss, it is I who decide”, which prevents me from seeing my children before they go to bed. Among other things, he also likes to ask me to come and see him on the other side of the company and then tell me “ah, too late”. I was exhausted and nervous after months of this treatment, and as I was away from work, accuses me of harming the company, and already gives me the intention not to return after maternity leave. “

Roxanne, a shop assistant, suffered from difficulties on her return from maternity leave, which led to depression. She had informed her superior in advance that she wanted to take partial parental leave.

“Shortly before my maternity leave, I spoke to her again to find out about my recovery schedule and then be able to find a nanny with whom these schedules would fit. She told me that she didn’t know, nor which shop I would work in, but that she would let me know before the birth. Without news, I raise it a month after giving birth. She then she tells me that she will close the holes in different shops, that it will be impossible for me to know my hours more than a week in advance at most and that my free days will change constantly. The nanny I found obviously refused these conditions. I proposed to my boss that she return full time to have a steady schedule, but she stuck to this idea of ​​an unpredictable makeshift schedule. With no childcare option, I was forced to take full and parental leave my doctor prescribed antidepressants for me, this situation has caused me too much anxiety. “

Why are there so many cases of harassment and discrimination?

In our society where work holds a special place, it is not surprising to see such abuses happen so frequently. Pregnant women are theoretically protected by French labor law, but in practice this does not sufficiently prevent discrimination.

1 in 4 mothers experience discrimination or harassment in the workplace related to maternity. This mechanism is very common: the employer feels betrayed by his employee who will be absent for several monthsand feels the need, conscious or unconscious, to punish her for this future absence.

But it is already society that has to punish working mothers: according to the American sociologist Michelle Budig, a man’s salary increases on average by 6% when he becomes a father, whilea woman loses 4% of her income with each child.

Not content with the loss of income and career advancement, the mother also has to suffer, in some cases, degraded working conditions, responsibilities taken from her or amplified pressures.

The employer also fears the consequences: sick days for the children, refusal to attend meetings at 6pm, Wednesday off. Yet these children often have a second parent as well. Looking forward to the day when all parents will be treated equally by the employerbecause they will all be equally likely to take parental leave, part-time work or sick days regardless of gender.

What if this happens to me?

The pregnant woman often has a certain mental vulnerability linked to pregnancy and therefore to the postpartum period, and does not always have the energy and perspective necessary to defend herself. Yet this situation robs her of the moments of pregnancy, lowers her self-esteem, lowers her confidence in her professional abilities, and increases the risk of postpartum depression or postpartum anxiety. These repeated cases of discrimination also fuel the distrust that women may have in their hierarchy.

It should be remembered that pregnant workers – and those who have declared that they benefit from medically assisted procreation treatment – are protected from dismissal, except for serious misconduct or economic reasons. Depending on the profession, this protection lasts 4 to 10 weeks after the end of the maternity leave.

If this happens to you, you can contact the Rights Defender, who will conduct an investigation. In the 5 years following the discrimination, you can also seize the prud’hommes and file a complaint within 6 years. Remember to keep all written evidence of the discrimination you have suffered : e-mails, SMS, call history, written testimonials from colleagues.

You can also contact the CIDFF (Women’s and Family Rights Information Center) in your department to request free legal advice. And you have the possibility to request an appointment with the occupational medicine, whose role is to monitor your well-being at work and your state of health.

In the end, remember to keep your sanity. What is happening to you is not normal, and it is not your fault, you have a right to protect yourself and your baby. Psychological support is often desired in such situations. Occupational medicine also has an occupational psychologist on its premises.

[1] According to a CSA survey for Halde carried out in 2010.

Photo credit image of one: Pexels / Yan Krukov