Pregnancy is often labeled as one of the most exciting experiences in a person’s life. But if you're a working mom-to-be, this time can come with a great deal of stress. Feeling discriminated against for being pregnant is more common than you might think, especially if your boss is out of control and keeps having meltdowns over the smallest details.
Five days ago, user joke_on_you9719 created a post on the r/MaliciousCompliance subreddit about how her boss, a candidate for local election, told her: "Since you are pregnant and can no longer door knock, you can either work for (state minimum wage) or you can find a new job."
The author of the thread told her boss that she would work her contractually obligated 30-day notice and only then leave the campaign. As you can guess, the candidate went nuclear, screaming and accusing her employee of imaginary things. Read the full story below and tell us what you think in the comment section!
Delusional boss fires a pregnant woman and goes "nuclear" when the woman asks to be paid for her contract
Image credits: Cparks (not the actual photo)
Here’s the woman’s full story
The author of the post found out that she was pregnant and got into a serious car accident later on
The woman can no longer door knock due to her injured back
Because of this reason, the candidate fires the pregnant woman
Mom-to-be hires a lawyer and collects evidence
Bored Panda reached out to the author of this post who was kind enough to have a little chat with us. "I decided to share my story online because I think it’s unfair how women are treated in the workplace," the user explained why she took her story to Reddit. "As I mention in the post, I proved the quality of my work and yet that wasn’t enough."
The candidate seemed to have a problem with the OP, saying that she was the reason her campaign was falling apart: "My boss was unhappy with the fact that I didn’t disqualify myself from taking the job on the basis that I was pregnant." But the woman decided to take a stance since "no woman should have to make the choice between feeding her family or having a baby."
The thread quickly touched the hearts of thousands, reaching more than 15.5K upvotes in just a few days. When asked why so many people found her story interesting and relevant, the user thinks that many people related to it "because they know our politicians spout lies."
"My boss constantly talked about how important family values were for her on the public stage but didn’t take into consideration me having to provide for my family. Many people have felt the pressures of having to decide between their job and having a family."
The user also turned to r/AntiWork subreddit and shared one of the emails her boss sent to her co-worker
It seems that for working parents in the U.S., the challenge of balancing a career and family life continues to be a real issue, according to Pew Research Center. While among working mothers, 72% work full-time, the public still thinks that such a situation is not "ideal" when it comes to raising children. "Some 42% said that having a mother who works part-time is ideal and 33% said what’s best for young children is to have a mother who doesn’t work at all."
Plus, among millennials with children, "women are much more likely than men to say being a working parent makes it harder for them to get ahead at work (58% of millennial moms say this, versus 19% of millennial dads)." This opens up a discussion about workplace policies created to support parents and families.
When it comes to pregnancy discrimination, joke_on_you9719 was truly surprised about how many people said they had been fired for similar reasons. She would like to share a few thoughts with people who are finding themselves in the same situation: "My advice would be to not back down at an employer who is threatening you when the law is on your side. Quietly collect your evidence and go through proper legal procedures."
The woman added: "Politicians like this need to be called out. Unfortunately, this is hardly the only instance of illicit behavior on campaigns and threatening staff to be quiet." Just remember, if you’re facing discrimination, the first step is to speak up and seek help. Of course, your job is important, but your physical and emotional well-being is worth so much more.
Here’s what some Reddit users had to say when they read the story online
