I had a great position as the head of Human Resources until I gave birth to my daughter. Soon after, I was told to quit if I needed the "9-5" hours, because the "9-5" gig was over. I am very loyal to the company, so I said no problem. I will help where I am needed. About a month goes by and I am told that I will be making a significantly smaller salary and that I will be losing some of the benefits I had. The HR duties were given to 2 other people and I was left working in the field without the salary and benefits that my family and I based our living expenses around (less than $30k). To top it all off, another one of my managers told me that she was able to have a "higher ranking" job than I because she didn't have children. Am I crazy? Isn't this discrimination?

That's terrible. Yes, it is discrimination but is it illegal? Probably not. There isn't any law, that I'm aware of, that protects parental status in the sense that you're discussing here. (There are some state laws that protect parental rights, such as when time off is needed for school meetings, etc.)

So, unfortunately, I'm not aware of anything that you can do other than find a place where your approach to a balanced work/family life is more welcomed.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

I'm not sure where you are located, but in California employment law controls how employers can treat employees. Many employers violate these rules and there have been cases such as yours. Discrimination can be based on Age, Gender, Nationality, Pregnancy, Race, Religion, and Sexual Orientation. Your issue deals with Pregnancy and Gender, they do not have a right to treat you in this manner.

I wish you the best. Stand up for your rights!

I'm sorry but I don't know how it could be seen as discrimination on the basif of pregnancy and gender. First of all, discrimination against those who are pregnant is not applicable to someone who is no longer pregnant. Also, the other person at a higher job level is another female. So, discrimination on the basis of gender is doubtful.

Do you know of any statute that would indicate that I am not correct?

Here is an article covering the same premise.

http://www.gwinnettdailyonline.com/GDP/archive/article802C7D0127834DF3A3EE6C2EA46E100A.asp

I appreciate the link but there are a couple of key points here that make it not a case of discrimination. First, the article you mentioned discusses differentiation of treatment between mothers and fathers. That isn't the issue here. The issue is whether a person can be reprimanded for not being at work for a sufficient amount of time. In my opinion, this person's job was changed because of an inability to work the required number of hours...not because she is a mother.

Since we are of differing opinions, my suggestion is that "newmommy" contact the EEOC or the state of California Department of Fair Employment and Housing to see if they believe she has a case.