Woman who lost job offer due to pregnancy awarded RM40,000

Federal Court, however, declines to answer three questions of law to bring certainty to similar cases in the future.

Former teacher Noorfadilla Ahmad Saikin won RM40,000 in damages for gender discrimination.

PUTRAJAYA: A former teacher whose job offer was revoked as she was pregnant was today awarded RM40,000 in damages by the Federal Court for breach of her constitutional right.

A five-man bench chaired by Chief Judge of Malaya Ahmad Maarop, in allowing Noorfadilla Ahmad Saikin’s appeal, only gave an additional RM10,000 to her for gender discrimination.

However, the bench allowed the government’s appeal to set aside an award of RM10,000 for pain and suffering.

Ahmad said the bench would not answer the three legal questions of law posed by Noorfadila.

“There is no necessity to answer the questions of law,” he said.

Last September, the apex court allowed Noorfadilla leave to appeal against the decision of the Court of Appeal.

She sued the government in 2011 after a job offer as a temporary teacher was withdrawn when the Hulu Langat district education office discovered she was pregnant.

In 2014, the Shah Alam High Court awarded her RM300,000 in damages after the judge allowed her lawsuit that claimed she had been discriminated against.

The Court of Appeal reduced the quantum and awarded RM30,000 for gender discrimination and another RM10,000 for emotional and mental distress.

Lawyer Honey Tan, who represented Noorfadilla, said the monetary award was secondary.

“The apex court today missed an opportunity to answer the three questions to bring certainty should there be similar cases in the future,” she told reporters.

Tan said the government has also not changed its policy on temporary pregnant teachers and it would have to pay if cases similar to Noorfadila’s ended up in court.

She said that in Noorfadilla’s case, there were no guidelines as to how the damages were to be assessed. -FMT