#be_disappointing
is a campaign
inspired by the example of one brave woman who decided to speak up when she realised she was underpaid at her job. Annually, she was receiving nearly 30% less than the market average for the job and what her male predecessor was making for the same position. She fought the fear and humiliation and spoke up, demanding answers. During many uncomfortable conversations with her employer she did not hear any reasoning for the lower salary and that only confirmed that it was either her Bulgarian origin or her gender that was the factor for the lower pay.
"They told me at first it was a mistake, and I wanted to believe... But they did not "fix" it for many months ahead and not retroactively. I kept on asking and raising the issue that led to a lot of tension. There is one meeting I keep on reliving in my head- one of the guys in the room got really annoyed with me and looked me straight in the eyes and just said "Bringing this again and again - you are disappointing, very disappointing". Immediately after this I cried in the office bathroom for a while and when I was done, I was already aware that this is not a mistake and that from now on my goal in this will be to win and #BeDisappointing".
After a few months the woman from this story was fired. Without a warning, without a negative performance review, without consideration for the fact that she moved 3000 km for this job and has 3 small kids.
Many women have experienced this story.
Many persons with disabilities have experienced this story.
Many Eastern Europeans have experienced this same exact story.
Her employer thought that the story ends here, but the story is just beginning.
Her name is Maya Doneva and she is currently suing her former employer for unlawful dismissal, workplace discrimination, reputation damages and moral damages.
Who is Maya Doneva?
Maya Doneva is an international expert in the field of social policy. Maya’s professional biography consists of many puzzle pieces - being a trainer, policy lead and lecturer on the topics of disability, equality and social innovation.
Delivering speeches and supporting teams between Ukraine, Gaza, the EU, Maya Doneva has been a driving force in many fields. She is the founder of The Social Teahouse Network- a chain of social enterprises supporting young people who grew up in social state care institutions with long term mentorship and their first employment experience. Between 2017 and 2021 Doneva was the executive director of one of the largest social service organizations in the Balkans- "Karin dom", where she was leading the team of 60+ professionals directly working with children and developing pilot initiatives on family support and early childhood intervention. During this time Karin dom and several corporate partners implemented a large infrastructure project for an innovative therapy centre focused on family centred services, which successfully opened and to this day helps over 400 families annually. In the period 2021-2023 Maya was Secretary General of EASPD - The European Association of Service providers for Persons with Disabilities representing over 20,000 NGOs working on quality services. Currently Maya is collaborating with several feminist organisations in Bulgaria and Belgium focusing in the field of gender pay gap, female empowerment and women in leadership. Maya has 3 children and currently resides in Belgium.
During the early months in one of her leadership roles Maya discovered she is severely underpaid4 months in the job she realised she gets 30% less on annual basis in comparison with the market average for the job and in comparison with what the previous person in the position was making. Doneva tried to discuss it in numerous occasions and slowly began to realise that this was a not mistake. During the time she was underpaid she had to overcome serious challenge in the workplace - former collaborators of the organisation were due to unpaid projects, there were harassment allegations claims due to missing HR systems and many external threats that needed mobilising her team. She handled all of that and managed to continue growing the organisation and even secured the highest funding up to now by an external partner.
Still all of this was not enough for her to keep her job, as she was eventually fired due to "lack of trust" due to her persistent refusal to accept severe underpayment. Maya was fired in a way she felt so humiliating without a warring, and could not even say goodbye to her team.
Since the beginning of 2024, she has filed a case with the Belgian courts, with a first-instance decision expected in 2025. Doneva's claims against her former employer are unlawful dismissal, gender pay-gap discrimination, and the resulting impact and damages on her reputation and personal well-being. Unsurprisingly, this public ordeal took a toll on her physical and mental health.
"Capacity building for strategic litigation" is not only a project funded by the Bulgarian fund for women, but the advocacy and empowerment approach Doneva decided to take as a response with unethical and illegal practices. Since she has openly spoken about her experiences she has been invited to many forums and conferences to share her story and inspire people to fight back and to prevent for others to live through similar to her experiences.
Why is she in court?
Funding
Many stories end here, but Maya decided to fight. WIth the help of family and fiends she gathered funds and started the court case. But the combination of medical and legal fees are becoming an overwhelming challenge for her.
Maya: "This is where I need your help. It has been more than difficult to find the necessary funds (over 20, 000 euro until now) to cover the medical bills due to the complications with my health due to stress and legal fees for the case itself. This is why many people in my situation don't go to court at all.
I want to succeed and I need your help in order to make stories like mine stories from the past. Your support in addressing my legal and medical bills will enable me to continue this fight for equality for all of us.
And don't forget- "Speak the truth, even if your voice shakes"
Yours,
Maya
Petition
The EU- networks based in Brussels cover many sectors - from rights of persons with disabilities and women's rights to recycling, green energy and culture. All networks are established in a similar way- membership based structures from European countries are united through their political priorities and work actively for their agendas. The EU-networks are trusted partners of the European Parliament, European commission and the UN. Often the EC discusses and takes in consideration the opinion of the leaders of those networks and gives space for their recommendations while shaping and implementing political decisions towards the member states. In order for those networks to have a meaningful political impact for all EU-citizens they must be representative of ALL European citizens but is that the case?
We urge all European networks to:
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establish fair working conditions for all their employees;
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embrace ethical practices of wellbeing, inclusion and work-life balance;
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ensure equal representation both in staff and boards taking in consideration all different EU-member state citizens.
We urge the European Commission as the key partner of all EU -umbrella networks and as their core-funding source to monitor and safeguard these principles continuously.
This campaign is realised with the financial support of the Bulgarian Fund for Women and the European Union. The views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of BFW, the EU or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency. Neither BFW,nor the EU nor the EEAA can be held responsible for the claims and opinions on this website.
