MONEY MORAL DILEMMA. Should Ian hire a waitress who may want kids?

smudger6876

An interesting dilemma, as a former manager of a small department (14 staff) in an NHS hospital, I once employed a young unmarried lady, on her starting day one of her first questions was about maternity entitlements (not something she had enquired about in her interview), literally to the day her length of service in the NHS entitled her to full maternity benfits she announced she was pregnant. She got married about 12 months later and her request for shifts which suited her and not the needs of the department seemed to change fromm week to week, alternatively we had an older gentleman (late 40's) who is married with a young child of 6, who was often often off with carer leave when the child was off school/ or requesting shift changes at short notice to accomodate his childs social activities.
Both of these staff caused difficulty for myself as the manager and a degree of resentment from other staff who felt they were working around them. I suppose my point is you cannot tell from an interview how things will pan out. Funnily enough they are still there and I am not.

lesleydejager

He could end up in a lot more financial trouble if he didn't hire her for that reason....discrimination compensation is UNCAPPED in an employment tribunal and this is clear and unequivocal sex discrimination. Having to pay some maternity pay might stetch his finances a little (although the majority of it would be refunded): being hit with a multi-million pound ET claim would definitely put him out of business.

Hire the best person for the job based on objective criteria such a qualifications and experience. If you don't YOU ARE BREAKING THE LAW!

Susan_Frost

I think if she is offered the job SHE SHOULD REFUSE IT. Why would a newly married person, with probably a relatively new mortgage pin her financial security on a business which may be failing. Baby or no baby. And if she is hoping to become pregnant reasonably soon, why go for a job she could lose before getting in her qualifying weeks for maternity leave.

DONT TAKE THE JOB. ALTHOUGH NOTHING IS GUARANTEED ANYWAY - GET SOMETHING WITH MORE LIKELIHOOD OF SECURITY

Gavin83

Im sure descrimination happens in just about every interview for every job, Im sure the interviewer in most cases allows some personal opinions and judgements to slip into their decision. The reason 'a better candidate was found' is normally the reason given, you can have your own reasons for rejecting that person that you don't necessarily need to tell them. It's all well and good saying it's unfair but it certainly happens.

I've heard of jobs before where they only want a female candidate for whatever reason, of course they can't advertise this but as soon as a man turned up for the interview he would be instantly dismissed.

In Ians case I wouldn't rule out hiring her but it would certainly count against her.

hannahh_3

In response to PhiltheBear's question about my gem of misinformation regarding birth rates, I think you'll find that here in Wales, 52% of children are born outside marriage. In the North East of England it's 55%. Nationally, the average is 43.4% of babies born to unmarried parents. Not quite half across the whole UK then, although it's near as makes no difference. Certainly devalues the argument of recently married women being more likely to have babies though.

vegankris

I'm all too painfully aware that the fact I'm a 29 year old woman who lives with a partner but has no kids sends alarm bells ringing for a lot of small businesses when I apply. I'm actually childfree by choice, but since that's an illegal question, they aren't to know this, and I probably get turned down for a lot of jobs just because of my age and sex.

Despite all of this, I honestly cannot say I'd blame Ian if he were to hire somebody else, it would be totally understandable.

David_Cameron

vegankris wrote: »

I'm all too painfully aware that the fact I'm a 29 year old woman who lives with a partner but has no kids sends alarm bells ringing for a lot of small businesses when I apply. I'm actually childfree by choice, but since that's an illegal question, they aren't to know this, and I probably get turned down for a lot of jobs just because of my age and sex.

Despite all of this, I honestly cannot say I'd blame Ian if he were to hire somebody else, it would be totally understandable.

Maternity leave is seldom a problem in larger businesses, especially if the job is not one seen as critical to the continuance of the business, so why not apply to those? Many smaller businesses also have jobs of a non-critical nature where no employer would turn you down on the basis that you suggest.

Might I suggest that whilst it is illegal for a prospective employer to ask you about your child-bearing plans, it is NOT against the law for YOU to raise that very subject and initiate an open and frank discussion of the matter. Indeed, such an action would certainly endear you to me in an interview as it would indicate that this might be an employee who actually has some interest in the well-being of the company she works for !

TristanWhite

He must hire her if she's the best person for the job. He shouldn't even have to think about it. There's no dilemma. If he has to think about it, perhaps he's not fit to be a manager.

Not every recently married bride wants kids, and especially not one who has just started a job. Likewise, any single unmarried girl could end up pregnant. To discriminate against her because she might become pregnant is repulsive and morally wrong.

If she were to become pregnant he'd get plenty of warning, and furthermore in the months leading up to the maternity leave her breasts will have filled out nicely, which will be excellent for business and for pulling in the punters.

;-)

JillD_2

As the wife of someone who runs a small business we have had this conversation many times. Of course as a woman I am all for equality but the cold hard economics of running a business mean that owners of small businesses simply cannot afford the hit of the 8% of the maternity pay that they have to shell out (the remaining 92% reclaimed from the government). Not only do they pay the 8% but there is paperwork, and re-recruitment that goes with that and time is money.

If my husband were to hire a full time employee who then went on maternity leave it would finish the business, they wouldnt be able to afford to operaste their costs are close to the bone.

I have 3 small children and over a period of 5 years I was off work for a total of 2 and ahalf years maternity leave. Naturally as an employee this was fantastic. I also took about 10 weeks of parental leave and also my annual leave accrued while I was off so I still had my 28 days or whatever it was each year as well. During all of this my employer was legally unable to hire a replacement for me. They could have hired a temo, yes, but again that is time t train them up knowing full well they will not be there at the end of the leave period. Another cost for a small business to bear.

If I were Ian I'd look around for someone else who might be in a more stable position in terms of their family circumstances (not that he would ever really know anyway!)

tallgirld

Discrimination is wrong..............

If he's that bothered why doesn't he just hire a man!!! :-)