Pregnant Woman Asked To Avoid Work Event With Baby Bump

Sexism at workplace is an age-old concept. But doubting a woman's professional competence because of her pregnancy is bizarre and invokes anger. A woman, going by the name Crapuccino on mumsnet, revealed how a male colleague reacted when she told him that she was very nervous as she has to attend an important work event. Her colleague tried to dampen her spirit by dissuading her to go for the event saying that her pregnancy would make her look "unprofessional".

Crapuccino took to Mumsnet to vent out her anger towards such bias faced by pregnant women.

Mumsnet user

A few months ago, foreign media reported that human rights lawyer Amal Clooney was seen flaunting her baby bump. The reality, however, was that she was there at the United Nations to deliver a speech on the issue of genocide. It seems that the content of her speech was totally ignored and her "baby bump" grabbed more eyeballs.

Read Also: Amal Clooney's Baby Bump Discussed More Than Her Powerful Speech At UN

SheThePeople.Tv spoke to some Indian women who have dealt with similar situations:

Shaili Chopra, Founder of SheThePeople.Tv, shares, "In the last nine months, I have been invited to speak and moderate on many occasions. I took up all that I wanted to. From being 8 months into my pregnancy and hosting national forums to walking in for all meetings, tummy first, it's been interesting to note reactions of people. From "Would you be able to take this project up?" to someone in the media being surprised at my guts to say I could start work on the tenth day after the baby's birth, I remain terribly amused at how both men and women respond to pregnant people. More so in the environment we live in today where dialogue on the matter seems to have matured."

Kiran Manral, popular Indian blogger and author, recalls, "I was in my last trimester when I went to give a presentation to a potential client. Needless to say we didn't get the account because the first thing that the brand head (also a woman) asked me was when I was due and how would I manage new business with a baby."

Kanika Malhotra, working as a nutrition expert in Delhi, says, "A lot of people coming to the office for health counselling are more fascinated seeing my baby bump than listening to the the practical tips I give them. Some of them keep staring at the bump until they sense my discomfort." She added that it seems that people around are clueless about pregnancy as they behave like they are seeing a baby bump for the first time.

We are waiting for the time when women would be taken as seriously as men with regard to work commitments despite the changes taking place in their personal life.

Read Also: I will not hide my baby bump on screen : Kareena Kapoor

Charvi Is An Intern With SheThePeople.TV