What Hobby Lobby Did to Their Pregnant Employee Will Make You Hate Them Even More
In a turn of events that surprised absolutely no one, a former Hobby Lobby employee has come forward share her experience of being fired essentially for becoming pregnant during her employment with the crafting retailer.
Felicia Allen, the employee in question, tried to apply to medical leave when it came time to deliver her child in late 2010. Though the chain does allow employees to use the Family Medical Leave act in situations like this, they claimed that Allen had not worked with them long enough to enjoy those particular benefits.
Because of this, she would have to take unpaid time off work for the delivery, as well as expected recovery time. She estimated she’d be out for about a month -- maybe even less. Allen had previously asked her supervisor if her taking maternity leave would be grounds for firing, which she was assured it would not.
Allen said, “I felt like everything was OK. I had talked to my boss, and she let me know that everything would be OK. I would still have my job.” Five months later, when she was ready to deliver her child, the managers were telling her a different story. Because of the time off she was expected to take, she would be fired, but was encouraged to reapply after her recovery time was up.
If that wasn’t shocking enough, she was again denied employment from Hobby Lobby when her recovery time was up. She then filed for unemployment benefits due to her unjust firing, only for Hobby Lobby executives to submit a false statement saying she was offered the personal leave, but denied it. At the time of her firing, Allen was adding a third child to her growing family. If she were to be ultimately barred from receiving her unemployment benefits, there would be no income to support her children while she found another job.
Given Hobby Lobby’s executives’ firmly-rooted beliefs in the Christian faith, one would expect kindness and generosity toward others, especially employees, to stay congruent with their philosophies. They claim to promote a strongly family-friendly atmosphere where everyone should feel at home. Allen, herself, is a believer in the religion and even used to frequent Hobby Lobby prior to her hiring -- and subsequent firing.
About her experience with the retailer, Allen said, “How can you be Christian and lie about something to hinder your employee or don’t want them to come back after they’ve had their baby?” It’s actions like these from Hobby Lobby that others have found to clash with other, more positive Christian groups that put emphasis on fostering strong, loving communities with minimal judgement.
Even though Allen eventually did win her unemployment benefits, it still begs the question: exactly how “family-friendly” is a company that discriminates against its employees based on pregnancy? Through their actions stemming from both Allen’s and this summer’s Supreme Court cases, it’s becoming more evident that Hobby Lobby truly does love families -- as long as these families are made on the corporation’s own terms.
