Share Your Story: Have you faced pregnancy discrimination in the workplace?

I used to work at Directv, in one  of their call centers. I was a member of the CRG (Customer Retention Group), part of the "elite"- we were trained in keeping customers who wished to disconnect services. My "save rate" (number of people who were convinced to keep our services) was 7 out of 10- a very, very good score. At this call center, you were on camera, and had to use a magnetic passcard to get from anyplace in the building to anyplace else- this included hallways, bathrooms, the cafeteria, etc. Also, all of your calls were recorded and the times logged, by a computer system, in order to calculate your "call metrics". We were given bonuses and raises, based on these factors. Mine were good. Then, I became pregnant. I very suddenly and dangerously retained water, gaining some 43 lbs. in a matter of a few days. I also became hyperemetic- I couldn't keep anything down. My doctor wrote numerous notes, explaining that I needed to have my feet elevated (as my ankles were now as big around as my thighs), and that I would need frequent breaks, in order to take in fluids, to try to keep everything moving- despite having all of that extra retained water, I needed to be drinking a LOT of fluids, to make up for what I was losing due to vomiting. I also began to experience debilitating migraines, complete with visual distortions, crippling pain, and (you guessed it!), even more nausea. On the surface of things, my workplace "accomodated" me- they allowed me to have a footstool at my work area, and scheduled me in such a way that I would be permitted as much as 2 days per week extra off, without having to fear being fired, should I have a migraine or nausea bad enough to prevent me from going to work. (I heard, at the time, that they were in fear of being sued in a class-action lawsuit, as they'd not treated others who had been pregnant very well- they had a reputation for outright firing women who became pregnant, in the past. And in a right-to-work state, most employers can get away with it.) However- as time went on, it became apparent that this was all on the surface. I was written up twice for calling in, and had to dispute it with the HR department, in order to have it taken off of my record- this directly affects your candidacy for receiving bonuses, you see. I was also written up for having had to leave the phone to use the bathroom several times- I was sternly warned by Team Leaders and Coaches that I should not consume so much water. When I sardonically replied to one of the coaches that I wasn't sure that it was worth my bonuses to endanger my baby, I was told that I could kiss the whole job goodbye, if that was my attitude. This went on for the remainder of the pregnancy. My save rate continued to 7 or above, but other things were picked on. The management team would periodically assess calls with us, playing back phone conversations complete with screenshots of what we were utilizing in the business system to resolve the callers' problems. I was written up, for the first time ever, for using a colloquialism- "you bet!", a phrase that I had used my entire life, and certainly for the entire duration of my employment with the company- I had used this phrase in almost all of my calls over the course of the two years that I'd been there, and had even been commended for my can-do, upbeat attitude for using it in the past. Suddenly, every tiny thing that could be nitpicked, WAS nitpicked. When I finally left, to have my son, I was told that my job would be waiting for me when I returned from maternity leave. I can assure you that it was NOT, despite the fact that I'd been a model employee prior to, and during, my pregnancy- great save rate, never tardy, and had always followed procedures to the T. Despite the fact that they are constantly recruiting, I was told that I should pursue opportunities elsewhere, when my leave was over.I will also tell you about another situation that occurred there, shortly after I left. While my son was still a tiny infant, the news reported that a woman who worked at Directv had inadvertently left her infant child in her minivan in the parking lot, killing him in the summer heat. I cried and cried, because when I worked there, mothers of infants were often singled out- the system there was such that if you were 1 second late from a break, you were written up. If your schedule was crazy, with turnarounds (an early morning shift, 5 AM, and you'd worked until 11 PM the night before), too bad. If you called in sick more than one day in a month, you could be terminated. This kind of schedule, and rigorous insistance that you adhere to their schedule perfectly, can cause even a non-parent a lot of stress. This poor woman had lost her child because, in her determination to keep her job, she had forgotten to drop the baby off at the daycare. The child had fallen asleep, so she didn't even realize that he was still in the vehicle. And she didn't get off shift until it was too late. My husband, who is also a former Directv employee, says that it's his belief that the mother did not kill that child- Directv did. And I fully agree with him. Here is the only place that I could find a copy of the story: http://ggweather.com/heat/25_2003.htm .

i was a male worker at a chemical plant in ingleside tx, when i injured my back on the job. Soon after i found myself in a performance improvement plan, which i didnt derserve to be in, they told me if i didnt go along i could quit or be fired.I went along and the terminated me for poor performance, even though many had much much worse performance than me. I hired a lawyer and he never wanted a jury trial and seemed to know what i would be asked before the other side asked it. i lost at every hearing. 10 years later the same lawyer lost his license for selling out his clients, but there was nothing i could do about the company's wrongful termination. i got 3000 for my back which still hurts. I spent 3000 to hire the lawyer for the wrongful termination, tahts texas justice !

In December, I received a glowing review, a 5% raise, and a 5% bonus.  I found out I was pregnant just before my company went on break the last week in December.  We told our families and then I called my employer to let her know that I was pregnant during break as I know from my first child that I get very sick during my first trimester.  She never responded to my call, so when we came back from break, I told her and the other 5 people in the small office.  Everything was fine that first week, but starting the very next week, her attitude completely changed and she started treating me differently.  My colleagues all commented on it and no one understood what was happening.  I could not do anything right - the way I told the office I was pregnant was wrong, I should have taken vacation hours when I was sick instead of working overtime to make-up the time (when she had said it was okay to do so) - nothing I did was right in her eyes.  The beginning of March I was put on probation and I refused to sign it/agree to it as the reasons stated were either subjective or completely unfounded.  A week later she gave me the choice to quit, leave when the "probation" period was up, or leave that day for maximum severance.  This occurred at the end of the day and I was told to sign a separation agreement.  Being in shock, pregnant, and under pressure, I stupidly signed it.  I sought legal advice and was told that I have a case, but because I signed the agreement, there is nothing I can do now.  A week after I was let go, my employer gave my HR representative a write-up of the termination.  My HR rep refused to sign it as it was not what she recalled to be correct.  A week after that, she was terminated.  After her termination, she called to tell me that my employer told her that she structured my termination so I would not become further vested in the company (my anniversary was April 1 and my termination date was March 15).

I couldn't resist writing. I went to work for Towers, Perrin, Forster and Crosby, a Reinsurance firm housed in the venerable PSFS building in Philadelphia. When I was about four months pregnant I was called into the Personnel office and asked to resign. When I asked why, I was told that they had heard I was pregnant,(actually, "going to have a baby" as if there was any other possibility) and because I took an escalator to my office on the mezzanine I might hurt myself, and they couldn't be liable. I was twenty-two at the time, newly graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, and healthy as an ox. It was 1953.Story #2. A representative from ARCO (Atlantic Richfield, an oil company) set up appointments for seniors who might be interested in working for them. I went with a fellow student to an interview. The representative gave us an overview of some of the different areas we might find interesting, then asked for a tentative response. The young man turned politely to me to let me speak first. I suggested the Overseas Operations, I believe, and our interviewer smiled. "Oh, we start all our girls in the typing pool." I was mortified (and angry) and I must say the young man I was with was uncomfortable, too. We had taken classes at Wharton together and he knew perfectly well that anything he could do I could do ... better. I stood up to leave, and to his credit, he did too. Over hot chocolate he assured me he would never go to work for them, either. It is a painful fact that little has changed.