Woman sacked for calling in sick on Mondays to get compensation from former boss

Celine Thorley, the woman, told the court that she suffered from endometriosis, a condition that can cause crippling pelvic pain, and was on the waiting list to consult a gynecologist.

Celine Thorley, the woman who worked at Students’ Union barbers, told the court that she had "severe pain" on the day she was fired and claimed that she suffered from endometriosis. (Representative image. Source: Getty Images/Thinkstock)

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Amid several companies offering period leave and promoting equality at workplace, a young woman in Cardiff, Wales was sacked by her boss for calling in sick on Mondays. Celine Thorley, the woman who worked at Students’ Union barbers, told the court that she had “severe pain” on the day she was fired and claimed that she suffered from endometriosis.

As her boss, Christian Donnelly, who owned Acute Barbers at the Cardiff University student union, did not follow a “fair process”, the court asked him to pay her 3,000 Euros as compensation after ruling she was genuinely ill with a heavy period, a WalesOnline report said.

The 25-year-old woman began working at the shop in 2018 with an annual pay of about £16,000. She was sacked in October 2021 after she failed to come on a Monday. The weekend she hosted a Halloween house party, Donnelly reportedly told her, “Don’t let me down on Monday.” However, the next morning she messaged him saying, “Hey Chris I know you’re going to be mad at me but I can’t make it to work sorry I really didn’t think I was going to be this bad I’m not well at all I was a mess yesterday and I’ve woke up this morning and was sick straight away. I really thought I was going to be okay today… my stomach is killing me and I’m all shaky… I really can’t get out of bed Chris. I’m soo sorry!”

The 39-year-old man replied, as per Metro report, “Don’t come in and you’re gone.” Even after Thorley warned him of taking the matter to the court, he replied, “You’ve had all your warnings. Crack on with all that legal s***.”

Donnelly claimed that she took more days off than her colleagues and the sick days always followed the weekend. She was absent on 17 Mondays and Tuesdays in total.

Thorley told the court that she suffered from endometriosis, a condition that can cause crippling pelvic pain, and was on the waiting list to consult a gynecologist. However, she was not formally diagnosed with the condition. She also added that her mother-in-law took time off to take care of her.

Employment Judge Roseanne Russell was quoted as saying by Metro that she had ‘physical impairment’ from menorrhagia – heavy periods. Putting forth Donnelly’s failure to follow formal procedure, Russell said, “A fair process had been ignored altogether.” She added, “The failure was not inadvertent but deliberate.” Meanwhile, Donnelly told WalesOnline that the amount of compensation was a farce and he does not know how he is going to cough it up.