Courts / Ireland / Report

Unislim ordered to pay trainer whose job changed 'beyond recognition' after maternity leave

Summary

Unislim Ltd was ordered by the Workplace Relations Commission to pay €9,000 to part‑time fitness trainer Marsha Flannery after she returned from maternity leave and received a new contract that changed her employment "beyond recognition." Flannery had worked for Unislim since 2016, teaching two in‑person classes a week on a ten‑hour contract. She went on maternity leave in May 2019, was due to return in March 2020, but the Covid‑19 pandemic caused the firm to shut down and she remained on sick leave before being laid off in September 2020. She took further maternity leave from December 2020 to June 2021 and then sought to return to work. The company offered her either one extra remote class or payment for six hours a week to teach two classes, and issued a new contract that set a new start date of September 2021, effectively erasing her 2016 start date.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Unislim ordered to pay trainer whose job changed 'beyond recognition' after maternity leave. Procedural stage: hearing_or_decision

When:

• May 2019 Other
• March 2020 Other
• December 2020 Other
• June 2021 Other
• September 2021 Other
• November 2019 Other
• 2023-01-18 Publication

Why: " "It is greatly surprising given the nature of the Respondent's enterprise (which perhaps garners more enthusiasm amongst women than men), that there would be so little understanding of how important it is that women should not be allowed to fall behind or otherwise disadvantaged in the workplace because they take maternity leave for their health, and for the health of their baby," Ms McGrath wrote. CNI source report

Topics

Stage Hearing Or Decision

Read the original CNI report