A brief guide to managing pregnant employees fairly
HR Dept
For most women, a pregnancy will be a wonderful and life-changing moment; don’t let it be a negative life-changing moment for your SME. At both a human and business level, care is required. You can play an important role in making it a success for everyone.
Some employers may cynically wish to discriminate; but it could also be possible to inadvertently do so with something clumsily said or done, or from simply not knowing the rules.
Pregnancy and maternity is a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010. From the moment an employee tells you that she is pregnant (or she hasn’t told you but you suspect it), you will need to be wary of discrimination risk.
Here is a quick guide to staying on the right side of the law, and maintaining a positive relationship with your pregnant employee. Across the UK, businesses do this successfully every day, and you can too.
Before a pregnancy
As soon as you start employing people it is good to have a company handbook which contains all your policies. This includes family policies that cover a pregnancy (and adoption, paternity etc.) setting out clear steps that employees and you the employer need to follow.
For the purposes of this guide, we will assume that you follow the statutory entitlements, but some companies choose to make more generous provisions contractually. If this were the case for you, you’ll need to follow what you contractually offer.
Making sure you and your employees are familiar with these policies will help inform everyone how to act at the appropriate times.
Disclosing the pregnancy
If she is entitled to maternity leave, she should tell you she is pregnant no later than the 15th week before the baby is due.
Health and safety is also an important consideration, and upon being informed of a pregnancy you must carry out an individual risk assessment. Ask us about this and we can put you in touch with The Health and Safety Dept.
It is good to remember that pregnancy is not an illness, and most proceed without any need to make significant changes.
Her notification of pregnancy should be put in writing and you should also reply in writing. Treat the news confidentially unless she advises you otherwise. Other important people in her life may not know yet.
If she does not tell you she is pregnant but you suspect she is, you should not ask directly or act on assumptions. Instead, address whatever your reasons are through general management, showing concern for well-being and support without mentioning pregnancy.
Creating an open environment should help her become comfortable enough to tell you.
Additional employment protections
A pregnant employee enjoys protection from being treated unfavourably due to the pregnancy under the Equality Act 2010. You should proactively take steps to ensure the protections apply, as unfavourable treatment comes in many forms.
The protections cover detriment, dismissal and redundancy.
Detriment – This could be defined as being treated less favourably than a non-pregnant employee. Think reducing her hours, being exposed to bullying or harassment from anyone in your business, or being overlooked for promotion opportunities as examples.
Dismissal – Being dismissed due to a pregnancy (or suspected pregnancy) is automatically an unfair dismissal. It doesn’t mean you cannot dismiss a pregnant employee, but you should have your legitimate reason and follow the correct process. Be aware that it could be subject to a high degree of scrutiny and risk.
Redundancy – Pregnant employees have additional protection against redundancy. The law requires that you offer them a suitable vacant position if there is one. The same protection extends whilst on maternity leave too.
The statutory entitlements
There are a host of statutory rights to which a pregnant employee is entitled, in addition to the above protections. As said earlier, these are minimums but some businesses may go further contractually.
· Time off for antenatal care.
· A right to request reasonable adjustments.
· A right to maternity leave and many will be eligible for maternity pay.
· After up to 26 weeks of maternity leave, they have the right to return to the same job (and conditions).
· After 26 weeks of leave, if the same job is not available (reasonably), they are entitled to be offered an alternative role, on at least as good conditions.
· Further parental leave options including shared parental leave.
· Two weeks’ neonatal leave and pay where required.
Many of these have additional rules and nuance. Please contact us to check anything.
General management
Be positive when managing a pregnant employee. You’re trying to balance running a business too, but it is a momentous time in anyone’s life and they will need support.
They have a right to request reasonable adjustments and there may also be some that are natural for you to offer. More frequent breaks, a comfortable workplace environment, flexible working options if possible, the following of recommendations by a GP or midwife and so on.
During maternity leave do stay in touch with her keeping her informed of changes, and invite her to events. She can use up to ten Keeping in Touch days to help both the business and herself. When she returns to work after maternity leave she may require a private, clean area to breastfeed or express milk.
You will also need to consider how you are going to manage her absence. Will you recruit a new person on a fixed-term contract? And if so, you need to factor in a recruitment time and handover. Or is there someone within the company who could take the role on a temporary basis?
Involving the pregnant employee in these decisions will make her feel more confident about her career.
Help from The HR Dept
There are many aspects of employing people that require a sure hand, good judgement and a thorough understanding of the rules. Pregnancy and maternity is one such example with a lot to get right, but also the opportunity to be a hugely positive influence in someone’s life.
Successfully managing pregnancies will enhance your business culture and make it more resilient. To make sure you are ready for it, or help with a current case, please contact us.
