Workers must have the legal right to paid time off after a
miscarriage, delegates from NASUWT-The Teachers'
Union will argue today.
As the law stands, workers experiencing miscarriage before the
end of their 24th week of pregnancy are not
statutorily entitled to maternity leave or pay, any pay or time
off is at discretion of their employer.
The NASUWT will be moving a motion at the TUC Congress in
Brighton calling for miscarriage to be included within statutory
maternity, paternity and parental bereavements rights so that
workers experiencing the trauma of miscarriage have the right to
paid time off.
Dr Patrick Roach, NASUWT General
Secretary, said:
“Miscarriage comes with huge emotional, and often physical,
implications. Estimates vary, but around one in five pregnancies
in the UK is thought to end in miscarriage, meaning tens of
thousands of workers are affected each year.
“Workers experiencing the trauma of miscarriage have to rely on
the goodwill of their employer if they need time off after
experiencing a miscarriage.
“The previous government failed to act and we are now asking the
new government to introduce legislation to extend rights to all
workers experiencing miscarriage.
“Workers experiencing miscarriage should not have their grief
compounded by having to go cap in hand to their employer or
worrying about whether they can afford time off. In a
compassionate society, paid miscarriage leave should be a
statutory right for all workers in all sectors.”
ENDS
The NASUWT motion is below.
Congress asserts that losing a baby at any stage of pregnancy can
have devastating and lifelong impacts on a person's emotional and
physical wellbeing as well as on their partner and families.
Congress notes the devastation surrounding miscarriage, and that
the stigma surrounding such loss leaves too many parents
struggling with often little or no support to deal with their
grief at work.
Congress is deeply concerned that despite the introduction of the
Parental Bereavement (Leave and Pay) Act in 2020, introducing
two weeks' statutory bereavement leave for pregnancy loss after
24 weeks (stillbirth), it remains the case that those who have
had the tragic experience of a miscarriage before 24 weeks, have
no right to bereavement leave and are ineligible for maternity or
paternity leave.
Congress believes that this situation is wholly unacceptable and
calls on the TUC to:
- campaign for the introduction of a
day one right to paid miscarriage leave for anyone (irrespective
of employment status) who has experienced a miscarriage before 24
weeks of pregnancy, coupled with the provision of specialist
support that recognises the extremely traumatic experience of
miscarriage for all those involved
- develop resources and training
materials to assist trade unions in negotiating agreements with
employers that recognises miscarriage as bereavement rather than
sickness absence and affords it the same legal protections as
other parental bereavement.
