The Social Chamber of the Superior Court of Justice of the Canary Islands (TSJC) has confirmed the nullity of the dismissal of a worker who was expelled from a company in Arrecife in May 2024 while undergoing assisted reproduction treatment.
The employee filed a lawsuit against the Wage Guarantee Fund (Fogasa) and against the company Amplifon Ibérica SAU in the capital of Lanzarote for this decision.
The Social Court number 1 of Arrecife had already ruled in her favor, declaring that her dismissal constituted a violation of fundamental rights to equality and non-discrimination.
In addition, the Arrecife Court ordered the company to immediately reinstate her with her previous working conditions, to pay the salaries accrued from her dismissal until her reinstatement or to compensate her for settlement and severance pay, as well as to pay her 7,501 euros for moral damages.
The company, which did not attend the conciliation act prior to the trial, appealed this decision through an appeal for reversal that has now been rejected. Apart from the aforementioned financial compensations, the company must now pay the costs of the trial, valued at 800 euros, including the technical representation of the worker.
The Superior Court of Justice of the Canary Islands states that there is "a connection" between the patient's decision to undergo treatment to become pregnant and the company's decision to dismiss her. In addition, it indicates that the company did not comply with its obligation to prove that it dismissed her for reasons other than "ending her relationship for the mere fact of wanting to be a mother."
This employee, who had been with the entity for two years, worked as an administrative officer in one of the Gaes centers in Arrecife with changing productions and which had been increasing from January 2024 above one million euros. However, she was dismissed on April 15, 2024, alleging the "low traffic" in the "production of the work center", although the Court has assured that the data showed the opposite.
According to the TSJC, the company knew that the worker was undergoing assisted reproduction treatment, since in November 2023 she was diagnosed with "primary sterility". For this reason, she had to go twice at the beginning of 2024 to a hospital in Tenerife to receive treatment at the Canarian Health Service.