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I could have fought of course and proved them wrong but I was not willing to at the expense of my health

I became aware I was pregnant just before starting my new exciting job in a very small company. The company was really looking forward to having me on board as the office manager to start up their business, as was I. I helped them a lot to set up the office before the official opening even though I was not employed yet and did it out of dedication and goodwill. Me and my partner have had plans to have a baby for several years and I had 2 miscarriages before but did not want to stop my life in case I fell pregnant as I didn’t know if and when it was going to happen. So it did happen just before I started the new job (when I accepted the job I was not aware I was pregnant). I had then planned to hide it for as long as I legally and physically could, but mother nature did not see it this way as I was pretty unwell in the first few weeks. I was unable to go in for 9am (start of work) a couple of days and felt I had to tell my employer the reason as I am an honest person and find it difficult to lie. I also had the understanding that the company was very ethical, based on human principles etc… so thought they would be able to give me some flexibility on my starting hour, at least for the first trimester. No need to say that this caused me to be very anxious and embarrassed in addition to the physical illness. When I announced it to the director (4 days after my first day), she was a bit surprised and did not know what to do. She said she would seek advice from her HR adviser and give me a call back the day after. She did, and basically told me that they wished they could be more flexible and open but given the small size of the office and the fact that it was relying on me (I was supervising an intern), and the huge amount of work ahead of us, they could not afford to jeopardise the company in reducing my hours for the first trimester, having uncertainty of the time I would turn up at the office etc… So they told me that I had to commit to my full 40 hrs a week (9am-6pm) or leave. I had to give an answer by the next Monday. I was in shock of this reaction, not pleased. I know it was not legal but my concern was my baby’s health and my wellbeing. I wanted to reduce all possible stress to give my baby the best chance to live. As my partner has a decent salary at the moment, he told me that I could not work and rest if this was for the best. So financially we should be OK but from a professional and personal point of view I feel really crap not having a job anymore, not having a salary anymore as we had planned to buy a house and without salary on my side this is now compromised. Plus I need to keep myself busy, not the type of person who can do nothing at home. I will be honest and say that I am glad I can sleep in and not worry about work load etc… and hopefully this helps my health and baby’s too. I think their reaction was wrong, I could have fought of course and proved them wrong but I was not willing to at the expense of my health. Now I cannot even claim benefits as I was the one resigning, not them firing me, not even sure if I could claim Maternity Allowance. I find this situation vey unfair, I did not want to leave on bad terms and give the company a bad name as it could jeopardise my chances to get a job when I get back to the workplace market (and in the industry I work in everyone knows each other and gossip travels fast). At this stage, ( I am 12 weeks pregnant) my family, friends and ex colleagues in the industry don’t even know about my situation. I am sure I will get back on my feet eventually, will find a new job when I am ready. Am thinking of doing some volunteering on a part time basis for the next few months to keep me busy.

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