A HR worker won £28,000 in a discrimination claim after being ordered to clean toilets after she returned from maternity leave. Sabbah Messum was demoted to housekeeping duties by her boss, who was attempting to 'degrade and humiliate' her in an attempt to force her to leave, an employment tribunal heard.
The panel concluded that the 38-year-old mother of three was the victim of a 'discriminatory regime' which penalised pregnant workers by creating a 'hostile' and 'intimidating' environment for them. She has now been awarded a total of £28,107.11 in compensation for injury to feelings.
The hearing was told that highly educated Mrs Messum, who has an MBA and represented herself at the hearing, started work as an executive and HR assistant at employee providers Bradford Management Services in Leeds in January 2019 she told her employers she was pregnant and would go on maternity leave later that year, the tribunal heard.
