Pregnant women and new parents will now have stronger protections against being fired, in a new crackdown on unfair workplace practices announced by the UK Government.
Pregnancy and maternity discrimination remain widespread in the workplace, having a devastating impact on what is meant to be an exciting time for new families.
These new safeguards will change that. From 2027, tribunals will use a new, stricter, approach for dismissal cases involving pregnant women and new parents. By doing this, it will require employers to have considered all reasonable alternatives to dismissal before pursuing it.
Protections will also be extended to employees taking adoption leave, shared parental leave, neonatal care leave and bereaved partner’s paternity leave.
By raising the bar for all companies, these reforms will ease pressure on working families, making them feel more secure in their jobs.
Minister for the Future of Work, Kate Dearden, said: “No one should have to choose between starting a family and staying in work. Pregnancy and maternity discrimination can have a devastating impact on people’s lives, forcing them out of work at the very moment they need security most.
“These new protections will raise the bar for employers, making it harder to dismiss pregnant women and new parents unfairly and helping families feel more secure at work.”
Rachel Grocott, Chief Executive Officer, Pregnant Then Screwed offered: “Our latest State of the Nation survey shows that a huge 73% of women experience pregnancy or maternity discrimination – a figure that is simply unacceptable.
“Every week we hear from women whose careers, finances and confidence have been knocked by unfair treatment during pregnancy, maternity leave or their return to work, and we’ve been taking this evidence to government for over a decade.
“So, we’re pleased to welcome these new protections: they’re an important step forward in creating a society where simply starting a family doesn’t wreck your career.
There is, of course, still lots more work to do to tackle the wider motherhood penalty – and we look forward to continuing to work with the government to make sure women, mothers and parents’ voices remain at the centre of decisions that affect their lives in such fundamental ways.”
Ali Fiddy, Director of Maternity Action said: “We welcome the move to enhance the protection from dismissal of pregnant women and new mothers.
We speak to thousands of women each year who are worried about losing their jobs simply because they are pregnant or have had a baby.
“Once introduced, we hope that the measures announced today will reduce the poor and unfair treatment experienced by expectant and new mothers and result in more women remaining in their jobs after having a baby.”
You can read the Government’s consultation response for pregnancy protections here.
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Image credit: https://unsplash.com/photos/a-pregnant-woman-holding-her-belly-in-her-hands-gi3sKBWQWTg
