As any man will testify, a blow to the nether regions is never a pleasant experience. But to compare that brief, if eye-watering, jolt of pain to the rigours of pregnancy and childbirth might seem a bit of a stretch.
Indeed, a tribunal has now ruled that telling colleagues that men being kicked in the privates is more painful than giving birth amounts to sex harassment.
In what an employment judge described as an 'ill-judged attempt at humour', the panel heard how a male worker made the comment in a group chat message, and tagged a pregnant colleague.
In the message he suggested that while women often choose to have another baby after giving birth, men never want to be kicked in the groin, so that must be less painful.
Other male colleagues sent 'thumbs up' responses in support of the message, the tribunal in Birmingham was told.
Amy Hope, who worked in an 'overwhelmingly male workplace', was only two weeks away from her due date.
She was left feeling 'upset', 'hurt', and 'belittled' by her colleague's comments - despite being intended as a 'humorous remark'.
Another colleague also made a 'gratuitous' remark about Ms Hope’s breasts, saying 'never mind the bump, the boob fairy hasn’t been either'.
A judge at Birmingham Employment Tribunal ruled Mr Lippett’s comment was sex harassment even though it was intended as a 'humorous remark'.
The judge found that Ms Hope felt 'insulted, disgusted and objectified' by the comment about the size of her breasts.
She is now in line for compensation after winning a sex harassment case.
The hearing held in Birmingham was told that Ms Hope started working at OLA Electric UK, an electric vehicle manufacturer, in 2022 as a Lead Human Factors Designer.
The Indian start up had established a design studio in Coventry that year.
Ms Hope told two of her bosses that she was pregnant in December 2022, but asked them not to pass this information on because she was 'anxious' about her pregnancy.
She then announced to the company that she was pregnant in February 2023, but was not subject to a risk assessment, nor was she given a satisfactory maternity policy.
After announcing her pregnancy, she spoke to Edmund Willis, the company's chief program designer, about her concern over the size of her baby bump.
She said that she was not showing much, and he replied saying 'Never mind the bump, the boob fairy hasn't been either'.
Ms Hope sent WhatsApp messages to her friends after the incident, saying that she would take 'great satisfaction' in applying to new jobs when the time was right.
She added: 'Welcome to working with 40 blokes.'
In July 2023, the company's studio engineering lead David Lippett sent a message on the company's WhatsApp group.
He said: 'Women say that giving birth is way more painful than a bloke getting kicked in the bs.
'Here is proof that they are wrong. A year or so after giving birth a woman will often say, 'It'd be nice to have another baby.'
'You never hear a bloke say, 'I wouldn't mind another kick in the bs.' Case closed. Saw this and thought of you Amy.'
A number of other employees gave the message a thumbs-up.
Ms Hope replied, saying: 'Although, suggesting childbirth isn't as bad may well be interpreted as indeed asking for a kick in the bs...'
Employment Judge David Maxwell ruled Mr Lippett's comment was sex harassment even though it was intended as a 'humorous remark'.
He said: 'I accept the evidence of Mr Lippett, to the effect that he and Ms Hope had a good relationship which included exchanging humorous remarks.
'He was not expressing a view that she would want to have another baby after her first, he was merely trying to be funny, in which endeavour he failed.
'Whilst she gave a robust response, she was not amused. Mr Lippett was cross-examined on this remark, and his answers did not demonstrate much insight into how this might have been received.
'Ms Hope's anxiety about pregnancy, the growth of her unborn child, and giving birth is corroborated by several messages sent to her employer.
'She was only two weeks away from her due date, and this was much on her mind.
'Her male colleagues and senior managers laughing about childbirth did not seem very funny to her.
'I accept that she was upset and hurt by this comment, which also made her feel belittled, and this was compounded by others in the group giving it a thumbs up.
'Her message in response was again part of her effort to maintain good working relationships.
'Mr Lippett's message was crude and made light of the Ms Hope's circumstances and the risks she faced.
'This ill-judged attempt at humour also came after several other unwelcome comments, which although they did not amount to harassment, are relevant to the context.'
The judge also said Mr Willis’s comment that the 'boob fairy' had not visited implied that 'larger breasts would have been bestowed had that occurred'. He said it was a remark about the size of Ms Hope’s breasts and 'entirely gratuitous'.
Ms Hope’s other claims were unsuccessful.
She was made redundant after the company stopped the project she was a part of in the UK.