The woman ended up cleaning caravans until she was 39 weeks pregnant.
A boss fired one of his employees after she returned from maternity leave pregnant again.
Nikita Twitchen was all set to go back to her office administration assistant role at First Grade Projects when she found out she had lost her job. Nikita had started working for the Pontypridd-based company in October 2021 and became pregnant not long after, going on maternity leave in June 2022.
She shared during an employment tribunal how she had a ‘very good’ working relationship with managing director Jeremy Morgan, saying that he had always been ‘very responsive’ whenever she needed to discuss anything with him.
After giving birth to her baby and getting ready to return to work, Twitchen met with Morgan for a return-to-work meeting on 17 February 2023. The meeting apparently ‘started off positively’ with Morgan mentioning how he was looking forward to her return and even agreeing on her working hours.
But everything changed when Twitchen revealed that she was pregnant again, now at eight weeks. While Morgan claimed to have congratulated her, Twitchen disagreed with that account.
When her maternity leave ended on 26 March, no one from First Grade contacted her about her return to work, even though she was expecting to be back on 3 April.
After reaching out to Morgan for an update, his response was simply: “It’s best to leave it until you have your routine in place.”
Then, on 4 April, Twitchen asked about her holiday entitlement for later in the year, but Morgan surprisingly ‘failed to provide a proper response’.
Finally, on 18 April, Morgan called her to say she was being made redundant due to financial struggles and delays in payments to the business.
Morgan explained that new software had eliminated her position and also mentioned that a workshop manager had been let go earlier that year—something Twitchen had never heard about.
Twitchen went on to work at a launderette and caravan park between June and October 2023, a role the judge commended her for, noting that she worked ‘in very hot conditions’ all the way up to 39 weeks pregnant.
The judge highlighted that Twitchen was in need of a job for her family’s financial security.
The judge also pointed out that Morgan never mentioned any financial problems or redundancy during their February meeting, in fact, he had said the business was doing well at the time.
First Grade’s failure to provide evidence of these alleged financial issues during the tribunal was criticised, and at no point did Twitchen receive a written explanation for her dismissal.
Furthermore, since Twitchen’s dismissal, the company had gone through a rebranding, hired new staff, and invested in vehicles. These actions led the judge to ‘doubt’ Morgan’s claim that the company was facing financial hardship.
It was concluded that Twitchen was dismissed because she was pregnant.
The judge considered Morgan’s ‘shift in attitude’ after learning of the pregnancy, his slower responses to her messages, and the complete absence of any ‘evidence-based alternative explanation’ for her dismissal, despite having had plenty of time to provide one.
The judge ruled that Ms. Twitchen’s dismissal was unfair, discriminatory, and must have caused her ‘significant anxiety and distress’, especially as she had been fired while pregnant, losing her sense of financial security along with all the family responsibilities she had.
First Grade and Morgan were ordered to pay her a compensation of £28,706.
First Grade Projects issued a statement to WalesOnline, saying: “We are extremely disappointed with the outcome of the tribunal. We are actively reviewing all relevant information and considering all available options. At this point in time we are unable to provide any further comment.”
