Many employers are at risk of falling foul of legislation designed to protect pregnant women and new mothers, according to new research by the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
The research found that 77% of working mothers surveyed reported potentially discriminatory or negative experiences. However only around a quarter (28%) of these raised the issue with their employer, only 3% went through their employer’s internal grievance procedure, and less than 1% pursued a claim to the employment tribunal.
The Commission reports that since the introduction in 2013 of tribunal fees of up to £1,200, the number of sex discrimination cases has dropped by 76% and pregnancy-related cases fell by 50%.
The research also revealed a lack of awareness amongst some employers of potential pitfalls during the recruitment process. Around 70% thought a woman should declare at the recruitment stage if they were pregnant, and a quarter thought that it was reasonable to question women of childbearing age at interview about their plans to have children.
The Commission is therefore calling for the Government to:
- take more effective steps to prevent employers asking during the recruitment process about a woman’s pregnancy or her intention to have children;
- explore the feasibility of a collective insurance scheme to support small and medium sized employers to provide enhanced pay and cover for maternity leave, based on a successful model used in Denmark;
- make changes to the employment tribunal fee system to ensure that fees are not a barrier to accessing justice for pregnant women and new mothers;
- consider increasing from three to six months the time limit for a woman to bring an employment tribunal case involving pregnancy and maternity discrimination.
Pregnancy and maternity rights can be a complex area and if handled incorrectly could give rise to a dispute between an employer and its employees. Employers should always seek expert advice if they are at all unsure of how best to proceed.
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