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The humiliation of having to express bre-stmilk in a storeroom was "obvious", the Federal Circuit Court has ruled, in upholding an employee's discrimination and adverse action claims.

Judge Philip Corbett awarded the employee more than $203k in penalties and compensation, after finding the employer treated her "very poorly" and she suffered psychological harm as a result.

The United Arab Emirates Ministry of Foreign Affairs employee worked as a waiter in the Melbourne consulate from July 2018 until her dismissal in November 2021. She subsequently claimed the employer breached sections 340 (adverse action), 351 (discrimination) and 44 (National Employment Standards) of the Fair Work Act.

The Court heard that in mid-2020, the employee informed then Consul General Dr Nariman Al Mulla that she was pregnant. In November that year, she asked to begin her parental leave in late December, but the Consul General directed her to go on leave on 1 December.

She then refused the employee's request for an additional 20 weeks of unpaid parental leave in March 2021...