Banker wins sex discrimination case over redundancy

Posted 16/08/2010

A banker who claimed she was forced out of her executive job after having a baby and going on maternity leave has won her case for sex discrimination.

Oksana Denysenko had worked at Credit Suisse in London since 2004 and began maternity leave in March 2006.

However, when she returned to work, she found that the person covering her absence was to stay on, forcing her to share her position.

Then, in December 2007, she was selected for redundancy after Credit Suisse said the department did not need two people in the same role.

Ms Denysenko took her case to an employment law tribunal in a bid to claim £13.5 million from her former employer and Judge George Foxwell has now agreed she was a victim of sex discrimination.

“The fact that the claimant had taken maternity leave and had ongoing responsibilities as a mother contributed to her selection for redundancy,” he remarked.

According to Directgov, it is illegal for an employer to sack a person for taking parental leave and any employment contracts will continue during the period of absence.