Pregnant women missing out on furlough wages as they’re wrongly placed on sick leave

SOME pregnant women are receiving statutory sick pay instead of 80 per cent of their wages, a charity is claiming.  

It says confusion over advice on pregnant women means some are not able to access the government’s furlough scheme.  

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Charity claims pregnant women not being able to apply for furlough scheme[/caption]

The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, said on March 16 pregnant women were an “at risk” group  from the coronavirus outbreak and should stay home and not have any social contact with other people.  

But the charity Maternity Action says instead of companies carrying out risk assessments or making changes to roles, some women were instead put on sick leave at this point. 

A series of amendments have since been made but the charity says some pregnant women are still receiving sick pay while other employees have access to the government furlough scheme.

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme was first announced by the Chancellor in March and more than nine million employees are expected to use it.

It entitles workers to 80 per cent of their wages, to a maximum of £2,500 per month, and has now been extended to June. 

On April 9 an amendment was made so employers could put employees who were already on sick leave, including pregnant women, on the government’s furlough scheme.  

But within the small print of another amendment last week, it said: “Where Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is paid or payable, furlough pay cannot begin until the original SSP period has ended.”

The charity says this could mean employers are less likely to put employees currently on sick leave onto the furlough scheme.  

The women affected are only receiving statutory sick pay, which could be as little as £94.25 a week instead of 80 per cent of their normal pay.  

Rosalind Bragg, director for Maternity Action, has written to the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, asking for urgent clarification on this.

The charity has highlighted details from the “Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999” around pregnant women.

It says the regulations state that employers must carry out a workplace risk assessment and, where they employ women of childbearing age, must specifically assess risks to new and expectant mothers.

If risks are identified, it says the employer needs to make reasonable adjustments to working conditions and hours of work, offer suitable alternative work, or if none is available, suspend the woman on full pay for as long as necessary to avoid the risks.

Some pregnant women have also called Maternity Action to ask for advice because they have been told the furlough scheme doesn’t apply to their employers.

It says it’s heard from women working in private care homes and pharmacies, who have been told the scheme only applies to businesses that have completely closed. 

This is another area it is now seeking clarification on. 

The letter from Rosalind Bragg said: “We believe it would be very helpful if the CJRS guidance could state explicitly that, if a pregnant woman is unable to be provided with alternative safe work or to work from home, she should be suspended on full pay (in line with existing health & safety law), and the employer can claim support through the CJRS.”  

Here’s some more information about what to do if you lose your job due to coronavirus.

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