New reader survey suggests pregnancy at work is a problem for the finance sector

Nearly one in 10 respondents to a reader survey of HR professionals confirmed that their employers had given a pregnant employee a package to end her employment in the last three years. This rose to over a quarter of HR professionals in the finance sector. The reader survey was carried out for the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) by Personnel Today magazine and the 1,200 responses generated is the highest response the magazine has ever received for a survey of this kind.

About one in 20 respondents said that an employee had made a pregnancy or maternity related claim against their organisation at an employment tribunal in the last three years. In the finance sector the proportion was about one in seven and in retail one in 10.

The HR professionals said that the issues having the biggest negative impact on the way employers manage pregnancy at work are the complexity of the laws relating to pregnancy and maternity, line managers’ lack of knowledge about maternity rights, and a lack of senior management commitment to offering flexible working. Previous EOC research found that the majority of employers have positive attitudes to pregnancy in the workplace, but a lack of awareness and understanding of their legal obligations is preventing many businesses from managing pregnancy effectively.

When asked which initiatives would help them most when managing pregnancy in the workplace, HR professionals put a single piece of legislation dealing with pregnancy and maternity, a code of practice for employers covering all legal rights and responsibilities and a toolkit to help employers manage pregnancy at the top of the list.

The reader survey was carried out for the EOC’s Pregnant and Productive investigation into pregnancy discrimination at work as part of a consultation process to ensure that the EOC’s investigation takes account of the issues employers face. Other research carried out for the investigation has also shown that one in five women who are pregnant while in employment are dismissed or suffer other financial loss as the result of a pregnancy.*

Julie Mellor, Chair of the EOC, says:
This survey gives us a good indication of what’s currently going wrong - and what could be done to make pregnancy at work a more positive experience for employers and their employees. It’s clear that employers want more help in managing pregnancy, especially when it comes to understanding and implementing the law. Many understand that there are real business benefits to be gained from handling pregnancy well, such as better retention rates and increased productivity.

The EOC will be taking these views seriously as we put together our final report and recommendations from our investigation into pregnancy discrimination at work.

Jane King, the editor of Personnel Today, says:

The HR profession is saying it is desperate for a simplification of the UK’s pregnancy law. Personnel Today will support any changes that would make the law clearer, more streamlined and more coherent.

The reader survey’s results are reported in this week’s issue of Personnel Today, published today.