Judge Gary Smart of The UK Employment Tribunal, recently upheld the claims of pregnancy discrimination and unfair dismissal of one Ms. Paula Milushka and awarded her £93,616.74 (approx Rs.1 Crore) in compensation for being wrongfully dismissed by her line Manager through a text message containing a jazz hands emoji while she was on pregnancy-related sick leave.

According to the Employment Tribunal’s ruling, Paula Miluska was dismissed by Ammar Kabir, her boss, who sent her a deliberately ambiguous message while she was on leave for pregnancy related illness, stating that the company was facing financial difficulties and required an employee who could be physically present in the office.

Paula Miluska, an investment consultant, who commenced her employment at Roman Property Group in March 2022, requested that she be allowed to work remotely due to severe morning sickness which she characterised as “horrendous” to her line manager Kabir in a text message.

Text messages between the two concluded with a notification of her termination and a “jazz hands emoji” depicting a smiling face with two palms facing outside.

According to the tribunal, when Ms. Miluska had to leave work early due to worsening nausea she informed Kabir, via message.

The next day, she sent another message explaining that her midwife had advised her to work from home temporarily, as the following two weeks were expected to be the peak period for pregnancy-related nausea due to hormonal changes. She also inquired about the requirement for a health and safety assessment upon her return to work, seeking clarification on the process.

The tribunal judge noted that no further text messages were exchanged between them until November 26, when Mr. Kabir inquired about Ms. Miluska’s well-being.

The following evening, Kabir responded to Ms. Miluska, inquiring whether she could work a few days the following week with a reduced schedule, finishing at 4 p.m. to relieve her of excessive strain. According to the Birmingham Employment Tribunal, his request was not deemed inappropriate, as he was preparing to go on a holiday.

In response, Ms. Miluska informed him that she had planned to request the week off instead due to severe illness, having retched multiple times that day. She expressed concern that if her condition did not improve within the next few days, she might require hospitalization. She further stated that she was unable to work from home, let alone commute to the office. Apologizing for her inability to support the company at that time, she conveyed feelings of guilt.

Kabir did not respond to Ms. Miluska’s message until December 1, at which point he informed her that the company needed to recruit an employee who could be physically present in the office due to increasing workloads. He emphasized that the decision was not intended to be personal and was driven by the company’s operational difficulties. Additionally, he stated that he would personally explore alternative employment opportunities for her and encouraged her to contact him once her health improved.

A reproduction of messages exchanged between Kabir and Milushka are highlighted : “Romaan said he’s going to clear the days you did so up until the 21st that will be with you today. Hope to see you soon. We’ve got a lot of catching up to do outside of work [‘jazz hands’ emoji].”

In response to the above message, Miluska expressed confusion regarding the situation, emphasizing that she had been working remotely as agreed since disclosing her pregnancy, despite experiencing severe maternity-related illness. She noted that she had successfully secured another allocation while enduring the peak of morning sickness and questioned why she was being dismissed under such circumstances.

Employment Judge Garry Smart determined that it was objectively clear from the message that the employment relationship was being terminated. Ms. Miluska received no further salary from December 1 onward. However, Kabir argued that she had not been formally dismissed. The tribunal however rejected his claim, ruling in favor of Ms. Miluska upholding her claims of pregnancy discrimination and unfair dismissal. She was awarded a sum of £93,616.74 by way of compensation by the UK employment tribunal.

Tap here for the official website article