Returning From Maternity Leave Should Not Cost Women Their Jobs

An Ontario Tribunal Awarded a Mother $17,246 After She Was Fired Returning From Maternity Leave

Key Takeaways

• Employees are protected when returning from maternity leave
  • Human rights protections apply to family status and parental responsibilities.
• Family status discrimination can include termination after leave
  • Employers cannot terminate or penalize employees because they took protected maternity or parental leave.
• Human rights damages can include emotional harm
  • Tribunals may award compensation for injury to dignity, feelings, and self-respect — not just lost wages.
• Economic vulnerability after leave matters
  • The Tribunal explicitly considered the financial and emotional strain placed on the employee and her family.
• Employers who ignore proceedings face consequences
  • The employer stopped participating in the Tribunal process, and the case proceeded largely on the employee’s uncontested evidence.

One thing has become very clear from our community recently: women need more information about their workplace rights.

The response to our recent coverage of employment and human rights cases showed just how many working mothers are navigating uncertainty around maternity leave, flexibility, job security, and discrimination at work. At Moms at Work, we believe understanding your rights is part of building collective power. And when it comes to returning from maternity leave, mothers continue to face significant barriers that too often go unspoken.

This Ontario Human Rights Tribunal case is an important reminder that legal protections exist — and that employers cannot simply disregard them.

In Davlatmamadova v. SD Financial Services Inc., the Tribunal ruled that an employee experienced discrimination based on family status after her employer terminated her employment immediately before her scheduled return from maternity leave.

The Tribunal ultimately awarded the employee more than $17,000 in damages, including compensation for injury to dignity, feelings, and self-respect.

While every workplace situation is different, the case reflects broader concerns many mothers continue to face around maternity leave, caregiving, job protection, and economic vulnerability after childbirth.

What Happened?

The employee worked as an administrative assistant at an insurance agency before beginning a 12-month maternity leave in 2018 after the birth of her third child.

According to the decision, she contacted her employer near the end of her leave to confirm that she would be returning to work the following Monday.

Her employer responded:
“Call me. I didn’t tell you to start. This is my company. Nice try.”

The Tribunal found that after initially agreeing she would continue working following her leave, the employer instead terminated her employment immediately before her return.

The Tribunal Found Family Status Discrimination

The Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario determined that the employee’s family status — specifically her role as a parent returning from maternity leave — was a factor in the termination of her employment.

Importantly, the employer largely stopped participating in the process and did not provide evidence contradicting the employee’s version of events.

The Tribunal ultimately accepted the employee’s evidence and concluded that her rights under Ontario’s Human Rights Code had been violated.

The Financial Impact on Mothers After Leave Is Real

The employee earned just over minimum wage before losing her job.

After her dismissal, she struggled to find comparable work and later worked as a cashier while attempting to obtain additional licensing qualifications.

The Tribunal noted that:

• she was supporting three young children,
• including a baby under one year old,
• and that her family was forced to rely on a single income after her dismissal.

The decision acknowledged the anxiety and financial pressure this created for her family.

The Tribunal Awarded Damages Beyond Lost Wages

The employee was awarded:

• $2,246 in lost wages, and
• $15,000 for injury to dignity, feelings, and self-respect.

One especially important part of the ruling is that the Tribunal emphasized that discrimination damages are not simply about lost income.

The decision reaffirmed that freedom from discrimination has intrinsic value and that losing employment for discriminatory reasons is itself harmful to a person’s dignity and self-worth.

Why This Case Matters for Working Mothers

Many women return from maternity leave carrying significant financial pressure, caregiving responsibilities, and career uncertainty.

At the same time, mothers continue to report:

• job loss after leave,
• reduced opportunities,
• role changes,
• hostility,
• exclusion,
• and assumptions about their commitment to work after becoming parents.

This case reinforces an important principle:
employees are protected from discrimination connected to pregnancy, parental leave, and family status.

It also reflects the very real economic precarity many mothers face when workplace protections fail. Learn more by reading the Moms at Work Canadian Maternity Leave Survey.

FAQs

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.

This article discusses Davlatmamadova v. SD Financial Services Inc..

Read the full Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario decision here:
CanLII – Davlatmamadova v. SD Financial Services Inc., 2026 HRTO 71