Isla is a project manager at a fast-growing tech startup. Good at her job, well-liked, no performance concerns. Last month she told her MD she was pregnant.
Three weeks later she had her first ever performance review. Then another. Then a formal warning.
Nothing had changed about Isla’s work.
Everything had changed about how she was being treated.
Isla hasn’t raised a grievance yet. But she’s been talking to ACAS. And she knows something the MD clearly doesn’t.
You don’t need to have worked somewhere for two years to be protected. You need to have announced a pregnancy.
The MD thinks he’s managing a performance issue. He’s walking into one of the most clear-cut discrimination claims in employment law. There is no cap on compensation. And timing is everything — tribunals notice it.
✅ 3 THINGS THE MD SHOULD HAVE KNOWN
1. Protection starts from the moment pregnancy is announced — not after a qualifying period, not after a scan, immediately
2. Any negative treatment after an announcement will be scrutinised — tribunals look at what changed and when
3. There is no cap on compensation for pregnancy discrimination — this is not a risk worth taking
At People Vision HR we help businesses handle pregnancy and maternity properly — the right policies, the right process and the conversations that need to happen before Isla’s ACAS call becomes your tribunal date.
Isla hasn’t filed yet. There’s still time to get this right.