A pregnant consultant was awarded a payout of more than £93,000 after her boss fired her for having morning sickness by sending her a text with a jazz hands emoji.
Her claims of pregnancy discrimination due because of pregnancy related illness, and unfair dismissal, were upheld.
Now, she has been awarded a total of £93,616.74 in compensation.
A tribunal heard that Paula Miluska began working for Roman Property Group Limited, based in Birmingham, in March 2022.
Her boss Ammar Kabir sent a ‘deliberately vague’ message to Paula Miluska while she was off sick explaining that the business was ‘struggling’ and they needed to find someone who can ‘be in the office’.
The comments came after the expectant mother asked to work from home because she felt ‘horrendous’ as a result of her morning nausea.
When delivering news of her dismissal, Mr Kabir sent her a text which ended with ‘I hope to see you soon we’ve got a lot of catching up to do outside of work’ followed by a ‘jazz hands smiley’.
The emoji shows a smiling face with two palms facing outwards and is said to indicate feelings of excitement and enthusiasm.
Ms Miluska took the business to an employment tribunal and has now been awarded compensation after a judge concluded she was unfairly sacked as a result of her pregnancy illness.
In October that year, the investment consultant found out that she was expecting and the following month, she ‘started to see the effects of her pregnancy in the form of morning sickness’.
The panel heard evidence of a message Ms Miluska sent to her line manager Mr Kabir when she needed to leave work early because of the ‘increasing nausea’ she had with her pregnancy.
The expectant mother told her boss that she felt ‘really faint’, was ‘shaking’, had ‘cold sweats’, and felt ‘horrible’.
She told Mr Kabir of her pregnancy and explained that she felt this way due to morning sickness.
The following day, she sent him a text which said: ‘The midwife was saying that at the moment if I can work from home it’ll be best as these next two weeks are usually the peak of pregnancy nausea due to hormones.
‘Also she mentioned that when I go back to work you need to do a health and safety assessment? I’m not sure what that is.’
The employment judge said there were ‘no other text messages’ between the pair until November 26, when Mr Kabir asked Ms Miluska how she was feeling.
The consultant told her boss she felt ‘horrendous’, adding: ‘I don’t understand why it’s called morning sickness when it hits you all day every day.’
Mr Kabir replied the following evening and asked Ms Miluska if she could go to the office for a couple of days the following week ‘and finish like 4 so it’s not too much’.
The tribunal, held in Birmingham, said Mr Kabir was going on holiday and therefore there was ‘nothing untoward’ in his request.
In response, Ms Miluska said: ‘Oh gosh I was about to message you about taking the week off. I was sick 6 times today and if it doesn’t ease up within the next few days I’m going to have to be admitted to hospital…
‘I don’t think I’ll even be able to work from home never mind the office.’
The pregnant consultant added: ‘So sorry I can’t support you right now, I feel bad’. Mr Kabir did not respond to her message until December 1.
When he did, he said: ‘Hey hope ur OK u probably guessed by now will need to try and find someone to be in the office as we’re falling behind on work I just want to say I hope you don’t take it personally or see us as bad but we are really struggling.
‘Aside from this me personally I’m going to try and see what other opportunities are there I can get you through the door for just message me when you’re feeling better.
‘Romaan said he’s going to clear the days you did so up until 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 smiley].’
Employment Judge Garry Smart said it’s ‘objectively clear’ that this text message is ‘bringing the employment relationship…to an end’.
The panel said the termination of her wages on that day meant there would be a ‘clean break with no wages from that date onwards’ and they do not believe ‘that this is a coincidence’.
They said that due to the ‘undertones of looking for other opportunities’ and the ‘words used in the message’, it is right to conclude that this message ‘amounted to a dismissal’.
In response, Ms Miluska – who works as a model part time – said: ‘I’m confused with what’s going on.
‘I’ve been working remotely as agreed since I told you I was pregnant to the best I can while suffering from maternity related sickness.
‘I’ve secured another allocation despite feeling worse than ever during the peak of morning sickness and now you’re firing me?’
She said it was ‘very out of the blue’ and said she ‘expects’ to be paid for ‘all the days I have worked from home including sick days with Commission included’.
Ms Miluska received no further pay from December 1 and despite Mr Kabir trying to argue that the pregnant worker was not dismissed – this was rejected by the tribunal.
The consultant was ‘simply bewildered as to why her colleague, and at that time a person she considered to be a friend, would treat her in that way’.
EJ Smart said: ‘The bad news being delivered, is not immediately obvious because it is given in an obscure and indirect way.
‘We find that the message has been left deliberately obscure by Mr Kabir and the person he made the decision with and consequently [RPGL].
‘It is obvious that [Ms Miluska’s] dismissal was because of her morning sickness which caused absence from the office, which is proven simply by the text message sent to her by Mr Kabir on 1 December 2022 an the preceding messages.
‘The morning sickness and absence are inextricably linked to the problems it caused the [business] to cover work.’
Her claims of pregnancy discrimination due because of pregnancy related illness, and unfair dismissal, were upheld.
Now, she has been awarded a total of £93,616.74 in compensation. Other claims made by Ms Miluska were dismissed. Daily mail reports
