- This topic has 26 replies, 17 voices, and was last updated 1 year, 2 months ago by
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DAs the title suggests, a well known Indian fintech startup has been mentally harassing a pregnant friend of mine and asking her to put down her papers after she has intimated her pregnancy status. When she refused to comply, they started putting pressure on her to go to PIP which comes under a grey area.
The strangest thing is this is coming from a very experienced CXO of the company and these guys have no shame whatsoever and all of these are in mail.
What are the next steps she can take? Should she accept PIP? Would definitely want a lawyers advice on this and if possible would love to connect with a practising lawyer about the same. Please feel free to DM me and I will connect you with my friend. -
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DYour friend is facing clear pregnancy discrimination, which is illegal under Indian labor laws. Here’s what she can do:
Legal Protections in India:
1. Maternity Benefit Act, 1961: Protects pregnant employees from termination or adverse treatment.
2. Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 & PoSH Act, 2013: Covers discrimination based on gender.
3. Industrial Disputes Act, 1947: Unfair termination can be challenged.Next Steps:
1. Document Everything: Keep all emails, messages, and any evidence of harassment or discrimination.
2. Avoid Resigning or Accepting PIP: A Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) is often used as a tool for forced exits.
3. File a Complaint:
• Internally: Raise a formal complaint with HR citing pregnancy discrimination.
• Externally: Approach the Labour Commissioner or National Commission for Women (NCW).
4. Seek Legal Help: A labor lawyer can help draft a legal notice or initiate legal proceedings.-
DHi thanks for the input. It’s sad to say that the HR and the management are hands in hands here since it’s a startup. In fact, the CXO is none other than the CHRO himself. She has already raised the concerns and the documented evidences to the CXOs and the HRs and they denied all the claims stating performance. They are not willing to accept even documented evidence is what surprises me even more
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QNAL : https://vishalsainiadv.com/blog/legal-rights-for-pregnant-employees-in-india/
Please take action against your employer for breach of the law and put him in jail. I know there may be NDAs that don’t allow you to name and shame, so you’ll have to approach the Labour office. Do NOT accept PIP under any circumstances. Save the emails sent to you, and print them out. Put them in a separate file or folder which you will use to document the very harassment they will be putting you through soon because they will hate that you’ll stand your ground. They will try everything, even harassing you out of the company. Document and record EVERYTHING, so that if you don’t get justice, at least you can go public and file such a mountain of cases against them, they have no choice other than to fall under their own hubris.
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S🤣🤣🤣. You think Indian law implementing and enforcement are strong ?
The labor commissioner would be paid off and he would rule against the woman.-
QI know it isn’t. I know better than anyone because I’m a woman myself and I’ve experienced it.
But it would surprise you how much they cave once they know you have a mountain of evidence that you can post online, that will get them AND the labour commissioner ripped apart. That’s why I told her to document, EVERYTHING. I’ve faced this implementation problem myself, there’s always a way out of it as long as you’re willing to stand your ground and fight like a badger. Nothing scares men more than a woman who fights like a badger.
The thing is though, with a doomsday mentality like this, you won’t know until you try. You know you’re dealing with a crappy system, you try to fight within it first anyway and if it doesn’t work then you do anything else necessary. And she should.
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NHas she formally intimated the status in writing? If not, ask your friend to do so immediately. A simple email one the lines of ‘hey, we discussed this, I am formally writing to let you know that I am pregnant and will discuss maternity leave, role planning etc. in due course” will suffice. If her discussion has been oral so far, they may kick start the formal PIP or other action and pretend they did that in good faith without prior knowledge of pregnancy.
Second, dismissal of a pregnant woman during maternity leave “or on account” of such maternity leave is prohibited. There is fine and potential criminal prosecution, so most companies are reluctant to outright fire people. They may either try to bluff it out, or engineer a retrospective narrative about performance (which seems to be the case here). She may keep her old performance evals ready, just in case.
Realistically though, she may want to, in her own interest, look for other jobs. Good luck.
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RWhich city is this?
Immediately approach the Labour Commissioner.
Written Representation to the NCW – Registered Post & Email Both,
State Human Rights Commission – Registered Post & Email Both.
If she is SC/ST/Backward Class – then she can also approach the respective commissions.
Document an email immediately under Lawyer’s advice with sequence of events starting from Friend informing Management about pregnancy and their reaction etc.
Don’t accept PIP or don’t resign under any circumstances. Move fast though and document everything on email. If they terminate her, then case will be stronger.
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SHi, from what limited knowledge I have on this aspect not giving her maternity benefits or firing her during her maternity leave is illegal. But can someone point me to the law/rule which says that a company simply cannot fire her even before she starts her maternity leave? I work as an in house counsel in a company and would like more clarity on this issue so that our Maternities Benefit Policies are aligned with the laws.
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