A woman who alleged sex discrimination after she was not given the opportunity for promotion while on maternity leave has settled the case for £215,000.
Maeve Bradley took the case against Citibank N.A. United Kingdom supported by the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland. She worked for Citibank in Belfast as an Assistant Vice President. The case was settled without admission of liability.
In the spring of 2023, Ms Bradley went on maternity leave and believed she was in line for a promotion on her return. Ahead of her return, she contacted a manager to let them know she had applied for reduced hours due to childcare needs.
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Mrs Bradley says she was offered an alternative role but was not comfortable with this suggestion as she had no experience of the new role. She then asked if anybody on the team had been promoted, and was told the person covering her maternity leave had been promoted to a Vice President role.
Believing this to be unlawful, as she wasn’t given the opportunity for promotion whilst on maternity leave, she raised a formal grievance. The grievance was not upheld.
She says the company advised that performance is the deciding factor for whether someone gets promoted. The person covering her maternity leave had the opportunity and time to demonstrate the strength of their performance and was promoted.
Mrs Bradley issued legal proceedings alleging sex discrimination. Later she brought a further two claims alleging sex and disability discrimination and victimisation. These were based on the time taken to deal with her grievance and her belief that there was a lack of adequate effort to support her return to work. Mrs Bradley did not return to work and her employment with Citibank was terminated as part of the settlement.
Mrs Bradley said: “For me, this experience has been incredibly stressful and disheartening. It came as quite a shock, that the individual hired to cover my role was promoted in my absence. I felt compelled to challenge this decision, not just for myself, but to ensure that no other woman is penalised for taking time off to have a child."
Geraldine McGahey, Chief Commissioner, Equality Commission for Northern Ireland said: “Issues around pregnancy and maternity in the workplace continue to be the most common complaints of sex discrimination made to the Commission.
“The laws protecting women from sex discrimination were introduced almost 50 years ago to ensure women can return to and remain in the workforce and not be disadvantaged because of pregnancy or family responsibilities. Maeve should have been considered for the promotion”, concluded Ms McGahey.
In settling the case Citibank affirmed its commitment to equality of opportunity in employment and to ensuring that its policies, procedures and practices comply in all respects with its obligations under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and the Sex Discrimination Northern Ireland Order 1976 and to ensure that’s its staff are aware of these obligations.
The company agreed to liaise with the Commission to review its equal opportunities policies, procedures and practices relating to the treatment of employees on maternity leave in Northern Ireland. The case was settled without admission of liability.
A Citi spokesperson added: “We were keen to retain Ms. Bradley as an employee at Citi and are disappointed that we were unable to reach an agreement on her return to work. We appreciate the engagement of Ms. Bradley and the Equality Commission in resolving this matter. At Citi, we strive to foster an inclusive workplace. Ensuring that our standards are well understood and complied with by everyone at Citi is a continuous, proactive process.”
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