A customer services representative who was given a pay rise last December and sacked when she became pregnant soon afterwards has been awarded £18,223 by an employment appeals tribunal.
The tribunal found Ms Mary Brien, of Palmerstown, Dublin, was dismissed because she was pregnant. The award was against her former employer, Schmidt Industries International.
At the tribunal hearing in May, at which neither side had legal representation, Ms Brien claimed Mr Jim Donnelly, managing director of Schmidt Industries, had a complete change of attitude towards her after she became pregnant.
She said he became aggressive and verbally abusive and offered her a sum of money to leave her job. Later she was asked to come back and train someone else in on her job, she claimed.
A representative for the company claimed she had received complaints about Ms Brien when she returned from leave in January. She said it was her performance at work that brought about the dismissal.
When contacted by The Irish Times yesterday Mr Donnelly denied he had sacked Ms Brien because of her pregnancy.
"I wouldn't dream of doing that. There are plenty of women here who have been pregnant that could confirm that," he said.
Mr Donnelly said he would seek to appeal the decision to the High Court. Under the Unfair Dismissals Act, 1977, people have six weeks to appeal an employment appeals tribunal decision. Ms Brien would not comment on the case.
Schmidt Industries is Irish-owned and supplies wholesalers with matting and protective clothing. It employs 50-60 staff.
A spokeswoman for the Equality Authority, Ms Mary McKeown, said: "It is sad to say but after years of legislation it still happens that people are dismissed for being pregnant."
Since the Equality Authority was founded last October there have been 1,251 public inquiries under the Maternity Protection Act, 1994, and 86 inquiries under the Unfair Dismissals Act, 1977.
The Equality Authority offers free information and legal advice and will pursue cases for workers under the employment equality Act. However, by pursuing a case through the employment appeals tribunal, higher compensation awards are possible.
According to Mr Brendan Archibald, national organiser for the trade union Mandate, "The pregnancy itself is not the problem, but with pregnancy people will be absent and there is the possibility of sick leave and employees wanting more flexible conditions, and some employers don't accept that."
"The whole issue of family friendly policies is more in place now," he said. "But in the smaller outfits it still happens."