Banker seeks £13.5m after losing her job because of baby

An investment banker claiming £13.5 million after she was made redundant following maternity leave has won her case for sex discrimination.

At first she shared the work with her cover, Yuri Kostrobi, but seven months later, in December 2007, she was made redundant. Credit Suisse Securities (Europe) claimed they did not need two people dealing with Ukraine.

But after an eight-day hearing, East London Employment Tribunal found Ms Denysenko had suffered discrimination and been unfairly dismissed. Judge George Foxwell said: "The fact that the claimant had taken maternity leave and had ongoing responsibilities as a mother contributed to her selection for redundancy." The panel is now deciding the size of her award.

Ms Denysenko, who is in her thirties, is Ukrainian and lives in Kensington. The tribunal found bosses made assumptions about her ability to work and travel as a young mother, claiming during redundancy consultations that she would not be able to "put in the hours". It concluded: "Had ... a fair procedure been adopted in redundancy selection it is more than likely she would have retained her job."

Ms Denysenko joined Credit Suisse in 2004. In December 2005 she revealed her pregnancy and the next month was promoted to vice-president. She started maternity leave in March 2006.

She was made redundant during the credit crunch, after instructions from New York to downsize the Ukrainian team — which Mr Kostrobi would not have been in had he not been employed for maternity cover.