54,000 women a year lose their job simply for getting pregnant. In addition, 390,00 working mums experience negative and potentially discriminatory treatment at work each year. These numbers almost doubled in a decade. Far from improving, the situation for working mums is rapidly deteriorating.
Pregnant women and new mums have limited access to justice, demonstrated by the fact that fewer than 1% of women take legal action against a discriminatory employer. Discrimination has a negative impact on a woman’s confidence, her mental health and her earning potential and it is a direct contributor to the gender pay gap. In addition to pregnancy and maternity discrimination, women encounter a multitude of barriers when trying to have children and a career including being reliant on one of the world’s most expensive, dysfunctional childcare systems and a lack of access to good quality flexible working. We know that by the time a woman’s first child is 12 years old , her pay is 33% less than a mans.
To tackle the root causes of maternity discrimination and promote the rights of women, we: