A woman who brought a sex discrimination complaint after being denied promotion while on maternity leave has reached a settlement for £215,000 (€257,000).
Maeve Bradley brought proceedings against Citibank NA UK with the support of the Northern Ireland Equality Commission.
The case was resolved without a finding of guilt.
Ms Bradley was an assistant vice president at Citibank in Belfast. She went on maternity leave in spring 2023 and expected to be offered a promotion upon her return.
Before returning, she contacted her manager and informed him of her intention to work part-time due to child care needs.
Ms Bradley claimed she was offered a different role but was unhappy with the offer because she did not have the experience to carry out the new duties.
She also mentioned that she asked if anyone on the team had been promoted and learned that the employee who had been temporarily replacing her had been promoted to vice president.
She said the situation was illegal because she was not given the chance to advance in her career while on maternity leave.
Ms Bradley made a formal complaint, which was not upheld.
The company believed that employee productivity was the key factor for promotion, she said.
Ms. Bradley filed a lawsuit accusing the company of gender discrimination.
She later filed two more lawsuits, alleging gender and disability discrimination, as well as victimization.
Maeve Bradley was not promoted while on maternity leave. Photo: Pacemaker/Equality Commission/PA
They referred to the time required to analyse her complaint and her belief that the measures taken to support her return to work were insufficient.
Ms. Bradley did not return to work and her employment with Citibank was terminated as a result of the settlement.
She noted: “This experience was extremely stressful and overwhelming for me.
“I was in complete shock to learn that the person hired to do my job had been promoted in my absence.
“I felt the need to challenge this decision not only for myself, but to ensure that no other woman is penalised for taking time off to have a baby.”
Geraldine McGahey, Chief Commissioner of the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland, commented: “Issues relating to pregnancy and maternity in the workplace continue to be one of the most common grounds for complaints of sex discrimination made to the Commission.
“Laws protecting women from gender discrimination were introduced nearly 50 years ago to ensure that women had the opportunity
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
