Working Mums - Legal rights for mothers in the workplace

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Mother’s Day is here to celebrate all the mums in society, and to recognise all the wonderful things they do.

But, motherhood isn’t always smooth sailing, especially if you are juggling parenting, work and a million other jobs at the same time.

Whether you’re a mum-to-be, a new mum or fixed in the throes of motherhood, there will be times when you might be questioning what your rights are at work. For example, how does maternity leave work, can I take time off for a dependant, and can I be dismissed because I’m pregnant?

We have rounded up some of the legal rights mothers have at work, all the way from pregnancy to menopause.

Working mums

Pregnancy

According to the government website, pregnant employees in the UK have four main legal rights under the Equality Act:

Paid time off for antenatal care
Maternity leave
Maternity pay or maternity allowance
Protection against unfair treatment, discrimination or dismissal

We have broken down what they mean and what you’re entitled to.

Antenatal care

By law, you have the right to reasonable time off with full pay for ‘antenatal’ (pregnancy-related) appointments and care before you have your baby.

You have this right:

From your first day of employment if you’re legally classed as an employee
Whether you work full time or part-time

The antenatal appointments need to be on the advice of a doctor, nurse or midwife and can include:

Scans
Pregnancy health checks
Relaxation classes, for example, pregnancy yoga
Parentcraft classes

Maternity leave

When you give birth, you will be entitled to 52 weeks of Statutory Maternity leave. You do not have to take 52 weeks, but you must take two weeks after your baby is born (or four weeks if you work in a factory).

The earliest you can start your leave is 11 weeks before the expected week of childbirth. If the baby is early, your leave will start the day after the birth, or automatically if you’re off work for a pregnancy-related illness in the 4 weeks before the week (Sunday to Saturday) that your baby is due

What is Statutory Maternity Pay?

Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) is paid for up to 39 weeks. You will get:

90% of your average weekly earnings (before tax) for the first 6 weeks
£172.48 or 90% of your average weekly earnings (whichever is lower) for the next 33 weeks

Statutory Maternity Pay is paid in the same way as your wages (for example monthly or weekly). Tax and National Insurance will be deducted. Statutory Maternity Pay will usually start when you take your maternity leave.

It will start automatically if you’re off work for a pregnancy-related illness in the four weeks before the week your baby is due.

IVF

IVF stands for ‘in vitro fertilisation’ and is a technique used to help people with fertility issues conceive if they are having trouble falling pregnant.

During IVF, an egg is removed from the woman’s ovaries and is fertilised with sperm in a laboratory. It can be carried out using your eggs and your partner’s sperm, or eggs and sperm from donors.

Your IVF rights

If you become pregnant through IVF, you will have the same pregnancy and maternity rights as non-IVF pregnancies. However, there’s no legal right to time off work for IVF treatment or related sickness.

Your employer should treat your IVF appointments and any sickness the same as any other medical appointment or sickness.

When you have pregnancy protection rights

If you’re going through IVF, you have pregnancy rights once you’ve had an embryo transfer (the last part of the IVF process) and might become pregnant. You do not have to tell your employer at this stage, but it might be helpful as they could offer support.

If your employer knows you might be pregnant, you’re protected against unfair dismissal and unfair treatment related to your possible pregnancy.

If you find out you’re pregnant

If you have conceived through IVF you continue to have the same rights throughout your pregnancy and maternity as with non-IVF pregnancies.

If IVF is unsuccessful

You’re protected by law against pregnancy discrimination for two weeks after finding out an embryo transfer was unsuccessful.

Pregnancy and maternity discrimination

There is legislation in place to protect pregnant women from discrimination and victimisation in the workplace. The Equality Act 2010 states it is unlawful to treat someone unfavourably because they are pregnant, breastfeeding or recently given birth.

Unfavourable treatment means that you are worse off because of discrimination relating to your pregnancy or maternity. This could include the following:

Unfavourable treatment

Not being considered for promotion or included in any training programmes
Working hours are reduced
A decrease in pay
Made redundant or fired claiming the grounds are pregnancy
A failure to carry out necessary risk assessments of the working environment could pose health and safety risks to pregnant women and unborn babies
Being pressured to resign

When you’ve given birth or are breastfeeding, you’re protected against discrimination for 26 weeks following the day you gave birth. If you’re treated unfavourably after this, you could still be protected against discrimination. However, it would be sex discrimination rather than pregnancy and maternity discrimination.

Unfair dismissal

Pregnancy is a protected characteristic preventing you from unfair dismissal. This means it is illegal for an employer to fire a worker because they are pregnant, or for a pregnancy-related illness.

If you’re dismissed while pregnant or on maternity leave, your employer must put the reason for your dismissal in writing.

If your dismissal can be linked to your pregnancy or maternity, you could make a claim to an employment tribunal for unfair dismissal and discrimination.

Menopause

Menopause affects all women between the ages of 40 and 60 and can cause them to experience physical and mental health symptoms as well as changes to their period.

But protections are in place to protect women with severe symptoms from being discriminated at work for their health problems.

The new guidance states that employers could be sued if they do not make “reasonable adjustments” at work for women going through menopause if their symptoms amount to being considered a disability.

According to the report, ‘reasonable adjustments’ could include flexibility around start and end times, working from home should be allowed where possible, and menopause-related absence should be recorded separately from other types of absence.

According to the EHRC, if menopause symptoms have a “long-term and substantial impact” on a woman’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities, these symptoms could be considered a disability.

If the symptoms amount to being a disability, the employer will be under a legal obligation to make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010. There will also be a legal obligation to not directly or indirectly discriminate because of the disability or subject the woman to discrimination arising from disability.

Mother’s Day: Legal rights for working mums