Young mum ordered to pay $150,000 after taking IBM to court for discrimination

A young mother has been ordered to bay $150,000 in costs after losing a court battle against her employer, international tech company IBM.

Software engineer Kelly Yeoh claimed she was being overworked by IBM following her return from maternity leave in July 2009.

Yeoh argued that IBM had contravened sex discrimination laws by giving her a workload that exceeded her 20-hour working week.

The software engineer claimed she was working between 40 and 60 hours each week for a period of almost 14 months.

Also read: Family-friendly practices discriminatory?

The Federal Ciruit Court of Australia, which heard the complaint last month, found that at no stage did IBM direct the applicant to work beyond her part-time hours.

The court found that when Yeoh did raise the issue of excessive work, her manager in fact directed her not to work more than the agreed 20 hours each week.

 The court has since ordered Yeoh to pay $150,000 in costs.

Judge Sandy Street said he did not accept that Yeoh was working more than 20 hours a week on a regular basis.

“I regard the applicant as having embellished her evidence and exaggerated her claims in order to try and advance her interests in respect of the proceedings,” Judge Street said.

Also read: Reddit CEO bans salary negotiations

Furthermore, in 2010 the young mother went on leave and broke up with her husband.

In her evidence, Yeoh said she blamed IBM for the break-up of her marriage and said it was one of the purposes for which she brought these proceedings.

Judge Street dismissed the allegation saying he couldn’t understand how Yeoh could attribute the break-up of her marriage to the refusal to change manager yet was not willing to write a complaint.

“I find that the applicant projected her problems onto those around her to blame others for her marital difficulties and problems following child birth,” Judge Street said.

Also read: Top 10 Workplace Trends for 2015

Judge Street said he was satisfied that IBM took reasonable steps to prevent Yeoh from being exposed to any conduct that against the law.

“I was impressed by the level of care and concern for the applicant that each of those involved in her management for the respondent displayed despite in what were obviously difficult circumstances in dealing with the applicant.”

You can follow Ingrid Fuary-Wagner on Twitter at @ingridFW1