Pregnant employees' rights

Pregnant employees have 4 main legal rights:

  • paid time off for antenatal care
  • maternity leave
  • maternity pay or maternity allowance
  • protection against unfair treatment, discrimination or dismissal

‘Antenatal care’ is not just medical appointments - it can also include antenatal or parenting classes if they’ve been recommended by a doctor or midwife.

Employers cannot change a pregnant employee’s contract terms and conditions without agreement - if they do they are in breach of contract.

Employers must give pregnant employees time off for antenatal care and pay their normal rate for this time off. The father or pregnant woman’s partner has the right to unpaid time off work to go to 2 antenatal appointments.

Maternity leave and Statutory Maternity Pay will start automatically if the employee is off work for a pregnancy-related illness in the 4 weeks before the baby is due - it does not matter what has been previously agreed.

Compulsory maternity leave

If the employee is not taking Statutory Maternity Leave, they must take 2 weeks off after the baby is born - or 4 weeks if they work in a factory.

Telling the employer about the pregnancy

Employees must tell their employer about the pregnancy at least 15 weeks before the beginning of the week the baby is due.

If this is not possible (for example because they did not know they were pregnant) the employer must be told as soon as possible.

Employees must also tell the employer when they want to start their Statutory Maternity Leave and Statutory Maternity Pay.

Employees cannot take time off for antenatal appointments until they’ve told the employer about the pregnancy.

Health and safety for pregnant employees

When the employee tells their employer they’re pregnant, the employer should assess the risks to the employee and their baby.

Risks could be caused by:

  • heavy lifting or carrying
  • standing or sitting for long periods without adequate breaks
  • exposure to toxic substances
  • long working hours

Where there are risks, the employer should take reasonable steps to remove them. For example, offering the employee different work or changing their hours.

The employer should suspend the employee on full pay if they cannot remove any risks. For example, offering suitable alternative work.

For full details about the regulations see the Health and Safety Executive website.

Pregnant employees who think they’re at risk but their employer disagrees should talk to their health and safety or trade union representative. If your employer still refuses to do anything, talk to your doctor or contact the Health and Safety Executive.

Pregnancy and maternity discrimination

It is against the law to discriminate against anyone because of being pregnant.

Read the Acas guide on pregnancy and maternity discrimination for more information.

Pregnant employees have the right to be offered a suitable alternative job (if one is available) if they’re selected for redundancy. This applies even if other colleagues are more suitable for the role.

The right starts from the date the employee tells their employer they’re pregnant and lasts for up to 18 months from the date the child is born. If the pregnancy ends early and the employee does not have the right to statutory maternity leave, the right lasts for 2 weeks after the end of the pregnancy.

Find out about employee rights when taking maternity leave and returning to work.

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