What benefit do i gain from telling my employer about my pregnancy?

[JollyRedGiant]

Apart from health and safety ones. Is there any protection from redundancy for example?

[Habble]

You can go to ante-natal appointments and get paid for it.

In my experience, employers are extra careful to not sack/make redundant pregnant employees because of possible tribunals but that might be because I've worked with people who have got stung before and so are extra cautious.

[JollyRedGiant]

Ante natal appointments are not a problem as I don't work many hours.

Hmm. I'm concerned that my job is going to disappear. Actually, that our office is going to close. So it's not like my employer would be assessing all the posts and deciding which to make redundant. We would all go.

This is my second job, so I would still be entitled to maternity leave and smp from my first job, but the second job would give me a lengthy period of full pay mat leave so although it is few hours the financial impact could be significant.

I think it is possible I need specific advice from someone I could explain the exact situation to in confidence. What kind of person would I get in touch with to ask that?

[GinandJag]

The uk government website has useful pages on redundancy.

[flowery]

If your concern is that your office is going to close and you would all go, then telling your employer about your pregnancy isn't going to make any difference. Do you have any reason to think they'd keep the office open because you are pregnant?

If your role is redundant while you are actually on maternity leave then you should be offered suitable alternative vacancies. Are there likely to be any?

If your role is redundant after you are 25 weeks pregnant then you would still get SMP but wouldn't be entitled to whatever your enhanced maternity pay is once employment had ended.

[JollyRedGiant]

Exactly, flowery, that's what I was thinking.

So in reality, in this situation, there is no benefit to telling my employer before I'm ready to tell the world in general.

[flowery]

Not really tbh. It's not going to have a bearing on their decision. If it does happen and your redundancy would be effective after the 15th week before your due date meaning you'd qualify for SMP, you will be able to tell them then. You're not going to gain anything by telling them early.

[JollyRedGiant]

Thank you.