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Clare McGlynn, "Pregnancy Dismissals and the Webb Litigation", Feminist Legal Studies Vol IV/2 [1996], 229-242: Can a woman be dismissed from employment on the grounds of pregnancy under English and European law? This is the question considered in the Webb litigation, which spanned eight years, with the final judgment that such a dismissal does constitute unlawful sex discrimination. This article examines the clear reluctance of the courts to grant protection from dismissal to pregnant women, preferring the economic arguments of business, and considers the statistics showing that it is upon pregnancy and childbirth that women are increasingly facing discrimination in the workplace. The article concludes that the advances so far gained in relation to pregnancy dismissals, do not yet reflect a cultural shift in attitudes and that consequently vigilance and continued campaigning is required to improve the real situation of women in the workplace.
Author's address: Clare McGlynn, Newcastle Law School, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU; e-mail: Clare.McGlynn@ncl.ac.uk

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