Employment Law Solicitors On Maternity Rights
Employment law solicitors have seen firsthand the increase in Employment Tribunal cases over the past year. There have been around 50% more cases and many experts are laying the blame firmly with the recession. Most employment law solicitors point to increased redundancies as employers try whatever they can to cut spending.
Unfortunately, it appears that women are experiencing more than their fair share of the redundancies, prompting many to consult employment law solicitors regarding gender discrimination. Most legal professionals would say they are not unjustified in doing so.
Often, women who take advantage of their legal right to maternity leave and pay find themselves first in the line of fire when redundancies become necessary. When the time comes for redundancies to be made, it is very often the case that the criteria used to select who stays and who goes is discriminatory in itself. For example, a company might look for employees willing to ‘go the extra mile,’ which almost always means staying at work late or willingness to entertain clients in the evening. When the situation of a woman with a child is considered, it could be said that these criteria are inherently discriminatory.
Employment law solicitors are keen to make women aware that they are not obliged to tell a potential employer if they are pregnant. Equally, employers are not legally allowed to ask a candidate if she is pregnant, or to deny her employment on the grounds that she is. Employment law solicitors also say that it could be considered dangerous for an employer to enquire about a women’s future plans for a family.
The advice of employment law solicitors for women who believe they have been selected for redundancy on discriminatory grounds is to gather as much evidence as possible. This might include internal memos and e-mails. It could also be useful, they say, to ask questions of an employer using a statutory discrimination questionnaire. Employers have eight weeks to complete it and failure to respond, or falsification of answers reflect very badly in Employment Tribunal cases.
Tags: Discriminatory Employment, Employment Discrimination, employment law solicitors, Employment Tribunal, Extra Mile, Fair Share, Future Plans, Gender Discrimination, Internal Memos, Legal Professionals, Line Of Fire, Maternity Leave, Maternity Pay, Maternity Rights, Questionnaire, Recession, redundancies, redundancy, Tribunal Cases, Willingness