Pregnant employees rights - info / help please!

[bew96]

Hello, this’ll be a long one but I’d really appreciate any help / info! Back story, I’m 26, almost 26w with my first and I’m a part time KP at a local cafe / restaurant working around 10 hours a week, roughly £100 a week. My bosses aren’t the worst but definitely not great either & they aren’t the easiest to talk to, they’ve made me cry at work before and they can be really cold & to be honest, pretty nasty. They’ve also never done a risk assessment with me at work since finding out I’m pregnant.

I only work 3 shifts a week, around 3/4 hours long but the entire time I’m lifting heavy filled industrial dishwasher sized trays in & out of the dishwasher & I’m also leaning forward / down into a low down stainless steel sink that is constant pressure / strain on my back & uncomfortable on my growing bump. I also don’t get any breaks, a seat to sit on etc, it’s non stop from when I walk in until I leave.

Anyway! I recently had a MW appointment and got given my Maternity Certificate to claim SMP or in my case, MA (as I don’t make £123 a week) and saw on the bottom of the paper a link to read my pregnant employee rights and as silly as it may sound, I actually had no idea of a few of them until I read the list.

The first one being that I am entitled to paid time off for antenatal care. Annoyingly, so far my entire pregnancy I have booked off the days I have appointments and because of that, I’ve missed out on pay. I’m not expecting to get that back dated and paid for the appointments I’ve already had as I’ll accept that being my own fault but I’m just wondering how I go forward with making sure I get paid for my future appointments obviously assuming they fall on a day I’d usually work. I’m guessing my bosses weren’t aware of this either or they have known and just been hoping I don’t find out.

Secondly I’ve read on the same list of pregnant employees rights that along with the risk assessments (that they’ve never done), employers should also suspend the employee on full pay if they cannot remove the risks (the heavy lifting of trays & I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily a risk but the discomfort & strain of reaching down into the sink) and I was just wondering, if anyone has anymore info / advice about that?

I don’t want to sound like I’m whining as I’m not at all, I also understand I’ve got it incredibly easy with my short shifts compared to those who work much longer hours but with my growing bump I am starting to struggle with the discomfort & strain on my body and as the weeks go on, the heavy lifting I do is starting to worry me a bit so I’m just wondering where I stand and what I should or can expect in my situation? Thanks so much ☺️

Your employers should definitely be aware of your rights. I’d request a meeting and raise the point about a risk assessment and your rights. Just because you’re working part time or shorter shifts doesn’t mean that they can overlook what you’re entitled to! I worked in a pub part time when I was pregnant with my first, so a similar situation to you, and the landlord was very aware of what my rights were and filling in risk assessments etc. Is there anyone you work with who could advocate for you in a meeting if you’re worried about how your bosses will be? If not, ACAS would be helpful.

I definitely think the heavy lifting and no risk assessment is a concern, and you should raise this with them to give them an opportunity to do something about it.

With appointments, yes you are allowed paid time off for appointments (inc classes not just midwives and scans btw!) but being part time I think it is also reasonable for them to expect these to be outside of work hours where possible. I only work 3 days and have had all my midwife appts in the evenings, and scans at weekends. You can use this to your advantage when you speak to them and point out that you havent had any time off yet for appointments and have been really trying to schedule them outside of work hours to minimise disruption, but please do a risk assessment and see if they can adjust the very heavy lifting part of your job/ give you more rest breaks.

Risk assessment should definitely be done. The lifting of the dishwasher trays I wouldn’t think would be enough of a risk to be unable to do while pregnant, you need to make sure you are lifting properly, with your knees not your back etc. The leaning over the sink can be remedied by a stool/chair if necessary. that should all be part of your risk assessment though.

i think there’s a website or something called pregnant and screwed which is supposed to be good so may be worth a look.

Hi @bew96
You shouldn't be doing any of that hun! At 26 weeks pregnant you should only be doing light duties. Do they have an indendent Occupational Health Advisor? x

I’m sure I’ve seen this post on another app today. Sorry you’re going through this! To be honest, it sounds like they’re a small business, so no in house HR. They may have an advisor though, so it’s worth an ask.
I’d discuss any tasks you’re finding strenuous with your employers, with the view to finding a solution/alternative work. They should be able to adjust your working day.
you could also try ACAS.