A Winnipeg woman is being compensated after she was terminated days after her employer found out she was pregnant.
Andrea Szabo was fired from her job in 2012 at Take Time cleaning service, when her employer found out she was missing work for pregnancy-related doctor’s appointments.
“I was just completely shocked, and I was pretty hurt that I would lose my job. And emotionally, I’m pregnant, and now I don’t have a job,” said Szabo.
A human rights adjudicator found that the termination was discriminatory, and the cleaning service would have to pay Szabo $5,000 in compensation.
Four years after the incident, Szabo said it’s not about the money.
“Regardless of the outcome, I just wanted to stand up for what I thought was right. I thought I was wronged, and I was wrongfully terminated. So I wanted to take a stand and voice my opinion, and hope for the best.”
The Manitoba Human Rights Commission said this type of behavior will not be tolerated in any workplace. Human rights commissioner Diane Dwarka says this should be a lesson to all employers when it comes to pregnancy and work.
“It’s not ok, it’s not acceptable,” said Dwarka. “There are a lot of employers who don’t fully understand the Human Rights Code, and they need to be more lenient.”
The owner of Take Time cleaning service did not respond to requests for an interview.
