Pregnancy & Maternity Discrimination

Authorities (8)

• Dekker v Stichting Vormingscentrum [1990] IRLR 27 [judgment]
  O. Due, J. C. Moitinho de Almeida, G. C. Rodríguez Iglesias, M. Díez de Velasco, Sir Gordon Slynn, C. N. Kakouris, F. Grévisse

  Discrimination; pregnancy; refusing to hire a woman because she is pregnant is direct sex discrimination (no comparator needed).

• Handels- og Kontorfunktionaerernes Forbund i Danmark [1991] IRLR 31 [judgment]
  O. Due, J. C. Moitinho de Almeida, G. C. Rodríguez Iglesias, M. Díez de Velasco, Sir Gordon Slynn, C. N. Kakouris, F. Grévisse

  Pregnancy; dismissal; dismissing a woman due to pregnancy-related illness is direct sex discrimination.

• Webb v EMO Air Cargo (UK) Ltd [1993] ICR 175; [1993] IRLR 27; [1993] 1 WLR 49 [judgment]
  Lord Keith of Kinkel, Lord Griffiths, Lord Browne-Wilkinson, Lord Mustill, Lord Slynn of Hadley

  ICR 175 (HL) / [1994] ICR 720 (ECJ) - Pregnancy; dismissal; dismissing a woman because she is unavailable due to pregnancy is sex discrimination.

• Ministry of Defence v Cannock [1994] ICR 918; [1994] IRLR 509 [judgment]
  Morison J (President)

  Remedies; discrimination; compensation in pregnancy dismissal cases; EAT confirmed that awards for injury to feelings are compensatory, not punitive, and provided guidance on calculating career loss and interest, emphasizing the need to avoid double recovery.

• O'Neill v Governors of St Thomas More Roman Catholic Voluntarily Aided Upper School [1997] ICR 33; [1996] IRLR 372
  Mummery J (President)

  Pregnancy discrimination and unfair dismissal. Under s.18 EqA 2010, unfavourable treatment because of pregnancy is discriminatory; the pregnancy need only be an effective and efficient cause of the treatment, not the sole or predominant cause. Also holds that a religious school could dismiss a teacher for pregnancy out of wedlock / living in sin (SOSR).

• Thibault v Cantal [1998] IRLR 399 [judgment]
  ECJ (Sixth Chamber)

  Maternity; assessment; failing to assess a woman for promotion because she is on maternity leave is discrimination.

• Brown v Rentokil Ltd Case C-394/96; [1998] ICR 790
  Court of Justice of the European Communities

  Pregnancy; sex discrimination; dismissal during maternity leave. The CJEU held that dismissing a woman for absences caused by pregnancy-related illness during her pregnancy is direct discrimination on grounds of sex, even where the employer would apply the same contractual absence provisions to men. The case affirmed that a woman cannot be dismissed during pregnancy for illness attributable to that pregnancy.

• Hertel (UK) Ltd v Woods [2014] UKEAT 0047_13_0411 (UKEATS/0047/13/BI; UKEAT/0160/14/SM; UKEAT/0161/14/SM), [2015] ICR 221, [2015] IRLR 15, Employment Appeal Tribunal, 4 November 2014 [judgment]
  The Honourable Mr Justice Langstaff (President), sitting alone

  Holiday pay; Working Time Regulations 1998; non-guaranteed overtime. A conjoined appeal heard with Bear Scotland Ltd v Fulton and AMEC Group Ltd v Law; see the Bear Scotland entry for the ratio. Article 7 of the Working Time Directive requires normal remuneration to include payments for overtime the worker is required to work although the employer is not obliged to offer it. Earlier entries in this dictionary wrongly recorded this as a pregnancy or maternity case.