'The Labor Rights Act is a great start, but it's not a silver bullet'

A few years ago, a few days after I found out I was pregnant, I called a woman who had recently offered me a job. She herself was about to go on maternity leave, and as it was a female-focused company – staffed entirely by women – I assumed there would be no problem. Legally, there was also no need to tell her that she was going on maternity leave eight months after joining the business, but it seemed like a polite thing to do… until the phone line went silent. I panicked, my stomach churning with guilt. “Okay,” she said. “I’ll call you back.”

When she (eventually) called back, she rather guiltily explained what benefits I would have – or rather, wouldn’t have – as a result of starting a new job while pregnant. And what I heard was both depressing and shocking.

Under the current system, when it comes to maternity leave, you are entitled to (at least) 90% of your full salary for the first six weeks. That is, if you had been employed for at least a year when you became pregnant. So for the average woman in the UK working full time, earning around £29,000 a year, that figure would be closer to the £500 a week mark. However, if you have no If you have been employed for a year, you will only be entitled to statutory maternity pay for those six weeks, which equates to just £183.03 per week. Do you notice much of a difference?

But things are – hopefully – about to change. The government today announced new plans for the Employment Rights Act as part of its Make Work Pay campaign.

It promised to introduce “day one” rights for workers, meaning you no longer have to be an employee for a specific period of time before you can benefit from the protections afforded to employees who have been with the company for a specific period of time. year or more. Something that is especially relevant if you are, or at some point may become, a working parent.

a person sitting at the table with a laptop and coffee

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The reform will also provide stronger protections for pregnant women and new mothers returning to work, including protection against dismissal during pregnancy, during maternity leave and within six months of returning to work.

There are also other equally important, non-financial rights that will come into force on day one, which I hope will benefit women in particular and help us close the gender pay gap (women still earn 91p for every £1 they earn). one man wins). ). Under government plans, employers will now have to offer “flexible working as standard” unless they can prove it’s incompatible with the role (a win whether you’re a parent or not: we all benefit from having more control over your work-life balance, which in turn has been proven to help increase happiness, health and productivity).

The new press release also says there will be reviews of the parental and carer’s leave systems (currently workers are entitled to one week of unpaid leave per year to care for a loved one and in the parental area, as you has been employed for a year, you can take up to 4 weeks per year of unpaid child leave) to ensure they are serving employers, workers and your loved ones. Furthermore, the Labor government has committed to tackling the complexities of zero hours contracts and establishing the right to bereavement leave.

All sounds promising, of course. I to want to feel calm. But we all know that when it comes to politics, you can’t get too excited until you read the fine print (see: ‘free’ childcare hours for frustrating details!) and we see the plans in action, says Joeli Brearley, CEO and founder of Pregnant Then Screwed.

“I to want to feel safe – but we all know you can’t get too excited until you’ve read the fine print”

“There are some clear wins in this bill – moving to an entitlement to parental leave on day one makes perfect sense, although we need clarity on whether this includes statutory pay. We are pleased to see that large employers will also be required to create action plans to reduce the gender pay gap, although we need clarity on how this will be enforced,” said Brearley. Cosmopolitan UK. “We’re thrilled that the government has moved forward with this bill, (but) the next step is to ensure it’s not all fur coat and no knickers… A review of parental leave seems (is just) kicking the can down the road. can on the way. Ultimately, (we already know) it needs to be better paid and paternity leave should be longer. We need action, not more investigation.”

Other experts are a little more enthusiastic about the changes. Jemima Olchawski, CEO of the Fawcett Society, said as part of the government’s announcement: “Today’s jobs bill is a victory for women. Fawcett and our members have campaigned long and hard to see the government chart a new course for inclusive economic growth and to improve women’s working lives. We share this government’s ambition to ensure that all women can thrive in work and contribute fully to the economy.”

All in all, it is a positive step, but it is not the miracle solution that maternity support in this country so desperately needs. We are still playing catch-up with other European countries, such as Finland, where both parents each have 164 days off work at 70% of their full salary.

Social pressures on women not to have children “too soon” after starting a role are also not going to disappear overnight – and this legislation will only ease a small burden on women.

pregnant businesswoman talking to coworker

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Time and again I hear from my career-driven friends, who are struggling with balancing progression and fertility, that they need to ‘make time to have their babies at work’. There is a feeling that it is “unfair” to get pregnant too quickly because it “disrupts” your workplace, and the consensus seems to be that it is “right” to wait two years after starting a new role before having a baby. In fact, a 2022 study from Fertility Family found that one in five women postponed giving birth to protect their career.

Stress also doesn’t miraculously subside if and when you get pregnant. There is still no end in sight for women selling their clothes or secretly working to earn extra money during maternity leave, just to survive, and let’s not forget that one in five women also used a food bank during maternity leave.

We must remain firm and continue to put pressure on those responsible to really commit to improving the quality of life (and professional stability) of women, regardless of their family situation. And on our side, perhaps – I know this is easier said than done – we have to stop allowing ourselves to feel guilty if we want to to do getting pregnant while in a new job.

Because when you think about it, it’s not totally crazy to plot your fertility and family planning around your from the boss preferences instead of yours?

From October 26, 2024, your employer’s basic offer will be the same whether you’ve been in the job for eighteen months or eighteen minutes. So if you’re thinking about when to try for a baby, yes, it’s probably wise to think about finances, how strong your relationship is, and how you deal with sleep deprivation. But for the love of God, please don’t think about how this will play out with your manager – and don’t forget to encourage your childless working wife to submit her flexible work request while you’re at it.