Pregnancy discrimination in the workplace requires change from the top: Sunnia Khaliq

However, challenges continue to persist for pregnant women in the workplace, extending far beyond evident discrimination. Limited career progression, inadequate risk assessments and long-term career halts following maternity leave are all prevalent – not to mention the loss of pension contributions whilst on maternity leave and the financial constraints on the employee and their family during this time.

The experience of career stagnation is all too common for women in the workplace, both during pregnancy and after returning from maternity leave. Research by the EHRC in 2016 revealed that a third of employers believe that women who become pregnant and new mothers in work are ‘generally less interested in career progression’ than other employees in their company.

Furthermore, 41 per cent of employers felt that pregnancy put an “unnecessary cost burden” on the workplace, leading to fewer promotion opportunities for expecting employees. These concerning findings show where a large proportion of employers’ interests lie.

To ensure their health and safety, pregnant employees are legally entitled to workplace risk assessments. However, there is often a failure on the employer’s part to conduct these assessments properly or adapt roles to accommodate pregnancy-related health needs.

A 2020 study by the UK’s Trades Union Congress (TUC) identified that, during the pandemic, a large number of employers were flouting health and safety law and putting women’s lives at risk – with 42 per cent of women reporting they had not had a workplace health and safety risk assessment.

While coronavirus may no longer be a threat to society, the treatment of women in the workplace is still going unnoticed. Shift workers in particular have been found to experience negative health effects such as fatigue and mental illness when working irregular hours, which can be heightened in pregnancy.

While on maternity leave, new mothers also suffer financially.

Employers still have to make contributions to an employee’s pension pot whilst they are on maternity leave, but the contribution is adjusted to their earnings. Therefore, if an employee elects to take both ordinary and additional maternity leave on statutory maternity pay, which most do, this could be nominal.

In the private sector, statistics show that 75 per cent of employers offer enhanced maternity pay – which is steadily increasing – however, the amount of employers that offer maternity pay anywhere near their full earnings is limited. This means that an employee who is pregnant (once, twice or more) during their career will almost certainly accumulate less in their pension pot compared to an employee who isn’t (usually their male counterparts).

The figures speak for themselves – the 2024 gender pay gap report by Now:Pensions found that women retire with average pension savings of £69,000, compared to £205,000 for men.

Alarmingly, to close this gap, women would need to start saving into their pension at just three years old to retire with the same amount of money as working men.

Whilst the law has adapted to further support employees who are pregnant and/or on maternity leave, in reality the concept of Shared Parental Leave (SPL) and Shared Parental Pay (SPP) is not really utilised by working mothers and fathers. A government report on SPL (2023) revealed a low take-up by eligible parents, with just 1 per cent of eligible mothers and 5 per cent of fathers and partners taking it.

The number of individuals in receipt of SPP has consistently improved since its introduction, but it is clear from the findings that SPL is not as popular as originally intended.

The explanation for this low uptake has been put down to financial factors, knowledge of eligibility and rights, a lack of awareness by employers and procedural complexity. Those parents working for smaller organisations were found to be somewhat in the dark when it comes to understanding about SPL – with 12 per cent of managers in smaller workplaces having knowledge of it compared to 89 per cent in larger organisations.

It is evident that a scheme which intended to encourage parents to share their responsibilities and to break the stereotypical assumptions that childcare is always the mother’s role is making slow progress – not to mention the extortionate costs of childcare which make it difficult for parents (usually the woman) to return to work.

On returning to work, the impact of maternity leave is not short-lived. Most workplaces do not implement plans to reintroduce team members, or to ensure continuity of professional relationships. As well as being overlooked for promotions, many female employees find themselves excluded from key projects or taking a backseat and earning less than their childless counterparts.

These systemic issues make it more difficult for women to progress in their career, leading to reduced leadership representation for them in the workforce, as well as widening gender pay gaps. Change must come from the top – those in management positions must ensure their workforce is well informed about their rights and strive to listen to the needs of female employees, both during pregnancy and on their re-introduction to the workplace.

With the Government’s planned “full review” of the parental leave system, change may be on the horizon to improve gender equality and support mums and dads.

Sunnia Khaliq is a dedicated Employment Solicitor at Chadwick Lawrence.