Pregnant classed as vulnerable?

[BYHA12]

Hi all,

So I know with covid19 it's all crazy out there. I know that pregnant women were classed as vulnerable when it all started.
I am so confused as now lockdown is easing so are pregnant women still classed as vulnerable? I work in the retail sector which involves heavy lifting etc so I am worried about returning to work. I am however only 9 weeks pregnant so I'm not sure where I stand...
I am currently on furlough and my work are aware that I have a child and due to no childcare I can't return yet but I haven't told them I am pregnant yet either.. is anyone else in a similar situation? Where do you stand with work? Are we still classed as vulnerable? Thanks xxx

I'm following out of curiosity I'm 5 weeks pregnant and due to return to work in a busy office, they don't know I'm pregnant yet as I'm furloughed until July.

I'm taking the government's failure to comment about pregnant women since the start of lockdown as a sign to carry on as I have been and that we fall into the vulnerable group still, especially those in 3rd trimester.

Maybe have a word with your work and let them know you're expecting (if you feel comfortable enough at this stage to tell them) especially if you are in a public facing roll and doing heavy lifting etc. They'll need to do you a risk assessment when you return to work anyway, I'm not sure about extra measures for covid.

I'm 28 weeks and furloughed atm and don't see myself going back to work before I have baby to be honest.

@hmfair54 I completely agree!!! I feel like the government have given no update on pregnant ladies since they first announced that they are classed as vulnerable.
I am currently 18 weeks pregnant and did tell my work at 6 weeks as that was when the virus was starting to spread and businesses were starting to work from home.
I have followed various threads on here, and it seems that a lot of pregnant ladies are being extra cautious and many are still working from home.

I believe the current guidance is for 3rd trimester, and all of us earlier on are expected to work if we can do so safely. Quite what ‘safely’ means isn’t clear to me though, and seems to depend on your job and employer. I guess stuff like lifting they’ll have standard policies for, but Covid not of course. I think really the only thing to do is talk to your work about it and see what they say. Unions have been good on this, but doesn’t sound like your area of work is unionised? If it is though I’d contact them for advice first.

I'm 17 weeks pregnant , I work in retail and went back to work a few weeks ago , my next midwife appointment is face to face and will be asking for advice then and be following what she's says I believe it's 28 weeks you are classed as vulnerable this is due to baby's lung ( I don't know if I'm right about this ).

Congrats on your pregnancy 🤰🏼

We’re classed as vulnerable for precaution without any proof
www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/people-at-higher-risk/pregnancy-and-coronavirus/
I’m 18 wks and am not particularly concerned.

@onlyfoolsnmothers - yeah, I’m planning to go back when I’m allowed to. Like you not overly worried about it, provided there are precautions in place.

The advice was updated that pregnant women with additional health issues and those over 28 weeks are considered vulnerable.

The advice for all pregnant women is to take extra precautions, work from home if possible and social distance etc so not dis-similar to the standard advice given to everyone. I think your employer is expected to do a risk assessment with you if they expect you to return to the workplace.

www.rcog.org.uk/en/guidelines-research-services/guidelines/coronavirus-pregnancy/covid-19-virus-infection-and-pregnancy/#occupational

I’ve attached the royal college of obs advice which most employers are following. It states that prior to 28 weeks you should where possible work from home or if in public facing roles and cannot work from home the company should try and adapt your role to not public facing roles alongside social distancing and with ppe if required.

After 28 weeks is where you should be working from home and should be limiting social contact 😊

Hope this helps 😊

I work within a customer facing role. When I spoke to my midwife last she said she recommended I work from home. She wrote me a letter for my manager explaining this and due to previous pregnancies being high risk with high blood pressure that I should definitely not be in my work place. It would definitely be worth speaking to your midwife. Congratulations by the way xx

I'm coming up to my third trimester and I'm being asked to go back next week as my workplace is reopening. My company are saying that they are only asking those in the very vulnerable shielded category to stay home not those in the vulnerable category. I have sent them links to the RCOG site which states that the risk increases in the third trimester, and told them my midwife has advised I work from home. I also sent them a link to the maternity rights website which says that pregnant women should be avoiding public transport. I rely on public transport to get in and work with the public. Normally my company look after their staff but doesn't seem like they are with me so I'm getting my union involved. It really depends on the company it seems

@kedooo that sounds awful!! Not very understanding at all especially as your in your 3rd trimester!! How long is it until your due to go on maternity leave??

@magvdamme I'm considering taking my maternity leave at the earliest possible opportunity now, whereas if I was going to be given alternative work from home I would've worked right up to the birth to have more time with the baby

I’ve been keeping my eye on the RCOG guidance in case anything is updated, however I’ve also been doing my own searching.

I found the other day that there’s a potential to injure the placenta. Based on this I’m not taking the risk and am working from home. Luckily my employer is supportive but I’d definitely be showing them that research if they weren’t.

@kedooo if they won't listen to your midwife would it be worth asking the Dr to sign you off?? Could give you a couple of weeks to tide you over lovely cx

I'm 20 weeks and can't work from home, so carrying on as normal. Not sure if it will change when I get to third trimester, that was originally when they said you were most vulnerable but then it seems to have changed to just if you have heart problems.

Hi I think it depends on your company to be honest. I also work in retail and have been off since I was 8 weeks pregnant (currently 15 weeks) and received a call from my manager last week to say that following a risk assessment carried out by the company pregnant women were still viewed as potentially being at risk and so I would potentially be off until I begin my maternity leave. This is being reviewed every 4 weeks so may change and other people classed as vulnerable who are not pregnant are being invited back to work following an occupational health assessment also.

I personally feel that I could be at work and following social distancing and hand washing but as my company risk assessment does not allow for this they have said I am unable to be at work unless things change so I will follow this advice for now.

My workplace has kept pregnant ladies off and included in the vulnerable group. The union has been very strong in making sure people return once we are certain things are safe etc. I think some factors work places are bearing in mind is

1. The environment. Our work place doesn't have any windows that open and it has aircon, staff are not using face masks as it's a call centre, plus due to the nature of how many staff and shift work involved we don't have fixed desks they're all shared.

1. There's a lot of stuff in regards to pregnant womens rights when it comes to employment and when your union is strong as well they probably won't want to risk anything going wrong.

At the moment it's all very they're waiting to hear from the higher ups, I'm waiting to hear from team leader when i can go back. Currently I'm about 24 weeks pregnant, maternity will officially start in September. I've been lucky that I still have my job and being paid, no idea when if or how often I will actually have shifts before maternity. Also I'm in Wales so we're normally blooming slower to get things going along than rest of UK! I agree though it's a pain in the arse to find out how pregnant women are classed and meant to handle stuff x

@magvdamme I'm calling my gp tomorrow, I tried Friday and the receptionist said they're not writing sick notes for anything covid related and if it's pregnancy related I need to speak to the midwife, but I'm insisting on a gp tel appointment, lol.
I'm surprised my work has been so strict on things, I work in transport and we have a very strong union. The union have said I have a case and they will back me, I didn't really want to go down this route but I may have to. Reading this post has helped as thinking of it the room I'll be working in has no windows or ventilation only air con too. I can't take early maternity soon but I still don't want to risk going in on public transport and working for the sake of a couple of weeks

My work also hasn't done a risk assessment for me to go back yet so I've asked for one and the union have said this will buy me some time as they need to do one before I go back

From what I understand (37 weeks here), pregnant women are vulnerable in the third trimester. This is because some previous cases of pregnant women with covid have gone into labour prematurely (which means babys lungs aren't fully developed and means they have a difficult time fighting off covid if its passed from mother to baby (either through face to face or vertical transmission)).

If you have a heart condition and are pregnant, you are at a high risk and need to be shielding.

Other than that though, your standard hand washing, clothes washing, social distancing, face touch avoiding should be enough to keep you safe.

Work does need to risk assess you (this should happen regardless of covid) and your role. They need to provide an adequate space and safe role for you to complete your job. No heavy lifting, no exposure to chemicals etc.
They also have a responsibility to all their workers to make sure that your work environment is adhering to protective measures for preventing covid transmission. Social distancing, PPE if required etc. So their risk assessment should not only include Covid measures but also your pregnancy specific ones.

If they do not have any adequate replacement jobs for you, you should be sent home and still get paid. Pregnancy is not something to be punished. It is your right to be pregnant and start a family should you wish to do so. So there should be no risk of punishment.

If you feel work are not doing what they should be, you can get some great advice from Maternity Action.

For those who are pregnant, keep an eye on Marernity Action, RCOG, NHS, WHO and Government website. Particularly the first two.

Hope this helps some of you.

@PlinkPlink thank you that's so helpful and very true! My union pointed me to maternity action and RCOG and I put links in my email to my manager to those sites. They said they have made it safe with ppe, etc but again no risk assessment has been done yet regarding my pregnancy and I'm in the third trimester soon, though like I said they said they're stance is to only allow those in the very vulnerable shielded category to be off not those in the vulnerable category. I'm nervous for what they say tomorrow but my union are going to back me and I have to stand up for myself. This isn't ideal having to go through this just to keep my unborn child safe but needs must

@kedooo It's such a shit situation.

I'm enjoying the ability to keep her as safe as possible inside for the few weeks I have left.

I really hope it works out for you and that your employers manage to sort something out that keep you and baby safe. It's great that your union are backing you 100% too.