Sportswear brand Nike is going to have a tough time getting around this one.

The brand often uses ‘women’s empowerment’ as a theme in its advertising, but they don’t seem too keen on it in practice.

British runner Jo Pavey has revealed Nike stopped her sponsorship immediately when she told them that she was pregnant, reports Sky News.

According to Pavey, the brand is “punishing” female athletes for starting a family.

“When I announced I was pregnant my contract was immediately paused,” Pavey said.

“One of the main problems is the target to get the contract back and the timescale. It was the joy of running that kept me going because you think ‘what will, be will be’ and I was focused on being a mum. But you don’t want to feel punished for being pregnant.”

American runner Alysia Montana became a worldwide sensation when a video of her competing while eight months pregnant went viral. She has now revealed that behind the scenes, she was fighting with Nike, who refused to pay her.

“The greatest disconnect is that they are not backing up what they are preaching, you know,” Montana told CBS.

“They are making this very grand gesture when they make these ads that are moving. ‘Just do it’ is their slogan, but ultimately, behind closed doors, everything that is a dream for women in particular is something that they are basically stuffing you down and saying actually, that’s not really for you, this is for TV.”

Here’s Montana talking about her experience with Nike:

Becoming a mother is, according to Nike, a failure to meet contractual agreements. It sends the message that motherhood is the end of your career, which is the kind of thinking that fuels the wage-gap and general discrimination against women in the workplace.

Not a good look, Nike.

[source:sky]