Reform plans threaten maternity leave and job security for half a million pregnant women, analysis shows

[IwantToRetire]

In February, the party’s equality spokesperson Suella Braverman unveiled plans to repeal the act “on day one” if it wins the next election, claiming that Britain is being “ripped apart by diversity, equality and inclusion” policies.

The Equality Act 2010 – which replaced previous anti-discrimination laws with a single act – legally protects those with protected characteristics, including pregnancy and maternity, from discrimination in the workplace and in wider society. It makes it unlawful to fire, harass, or disadvantage women because they are pregnant, have a pregnancy-related illness, or are on maternity leave.

Losing protections from the Equality Act would remove the legal requirement for employers to treat pregnant women and new mothers fairly, likely leading to discrimination.

Protected characteristics under the Equality Act also include age, disability, gender reassignment, marital status, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

Ms Braverman described protected characteristics as being “pernicious” and “divisive”.

Full article https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/reform-uk-nigel-farage-equality-act-pregnant-women-maternity-b2967253.html
and https://archive.is/foM0D

Well alll that bother, money and women's time, to get the Supreme Court ruling about sex being biological in the EA,will be pointless as Reform thinks to have sex as a protected characteristic is pernicious and divisive!

Not surprised in the slightest. They're a nasty, greedy, evil party enthrall to a cunt. Forgive my language, but it's the only word suitable for that grifter.

They’re no friend of women nor children.

Yes that sounds like what I'd expect from the horrible people involved with Reform. Hopefully people realize that before it's too late.

Cunts are wonderful and miraculous.

Nigel Farage is a racist conman trying to dissect this country for cash.

Electing him is like agreeing to sell a kidney. We’ll be lucky to keep any of the other organs. Or to wake up at all.

A society that doesn’t value maternity, isn’t going to progress

Not surprising at all.

Most of the people who vote for Reform don't care about protecting basic rights because they are too thick to realise that it is their own rights which are being protected as well as those of other people.

These articles are always written as though only a few special people have a protected characteristic, as in 'legally protects those with a pc', above. But we all have at least one PC- sex, so we are all protected on that one alone, and some of us will have others that might be relevant at particular times.

It seems to me that people, especially HR people, misinterpret and misapply the law on this, which has led to all the problems we've seen.

Reform won't reform that Act.

Just going to leave this from A Man For All Seasons here:

William Roper: “So, now you give the Devil the benefit of law!”

Sir Thomas More: “Yes! What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil?”

William Roper: “Yes, I'd cut down every law in England to do that!”

Sir Thomas More: “Oh? And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned 'round on you, where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country is planted thick with laws, from coast to coast, Man's laws, not God's! And if you cut them down, and you're just the man to do it, do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I'd give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake!

Or disabled people, poor people, and people of colour, no doubt there is more...

Its actually terrifying people will vote for them. I've seen people say they will vote for them bcause they are gender critical as if this, in some ways means they give a toss about women.
Edited to say I am GC but know Reform are just doing this as a populist vote winner.

I find it pretty terrifying. Those laws have been in place for decades - eg the Sex Discrimination Act, which is incorporated into the Equality Act, came into force in the 1970s. It was transformative for women because it meant that employers could no longer specify that a job was for men only, and medical schools couldn't operate quotas to keep out female students. Lots of other stuff besides, of course. The idea that it could become lawful to discriminate on the basis of sex, race or sexuality (among other things) would take us back to the 60s.

The leopards haven’t changed their spots. Reform is lead by and has been recruiting people who “know what a woman is” because she’s of the half of the population whose destiny is to be unpaid domestic labour. All the begs-the-question wailing about “valuing motherhood” is quickly exposed for what it really is as soon as they start talking about how keen they are to whip away women’s rights and opportunities as soon as they become pregnant or actually have children!

Their intention is not to remove maternity rights but to reinstate that laws in place before the equality act. Clearly that is not straightforward as they effective cease to exist when repealed. I think there are likely to be a lot of undesirable consequences from a poorly thought through repeal but to say they seeking to remove maternity rights is disingenuous.

I won’t be voting reform though.

Don't they also want to penalise women who don't have enough babies?

Can you link to their policy that states this?

They were always going to crap on women's rights. I'd bet money on them cutting down on statutory maternity and paternity leave and pay if they get in to government. They'll claim it 'harms productivity' or 'isn't fair on small businesses' and then whinge about why people aren't having kids.

But yes, removing the Equality Act has all kinds of consequences that they just don't know or care about.

No way in a million years I would vote for that poundshop Mosley and his shower of grifters. He is no friend to women.

And that's it in a nutshell the dafties think it's only brown people.
Think again it's anyone who isn't multi million/billionaire that's there kind of people not the one hoiking flags up lamp posts.

As opposed to Labour who still don’t know what a woman is? Who balk at even naming women as the group that need maternity rights? Who have hung onto the EHRC guidance and refuse to actually implement the equality act? Or the Greens who want to do away with women’s rights entirely?

The choice is between the devil and the deep blue sea.

Well not really.
I take it you are all in favour of repealing the Equalities Act and all its protections? The implication of that far more damaging to every single woman in the UK than any other policy of any other party.

Reform are saying they intend to repeal and replace the EqA. Not remove maternity rights.

I dont think any of us know what that means in practice, but I think the assumption they are going to remove all rights for pregnant women is a stretch.

The EqA isn't without its fault, either in the way that it is written or interpreted. The idea that the rights of women and girls have to be balanced with the rights of men with the PC of GC is bonkers. These are just men who want to force everyone else to believe they are women, they shouldn't have been allowed anywhere near womens spaces and opportunities.

Even if that was a misinterpretation of the law, the fact that this has happen indicates the act needs reassessing.

Whenever I hear ‘Equalities Act’ it comes with LBGTQ+ indoctrination.

This is the backlash. The problem is that we have had some crazy things happening under the aegis of DEI. Look at the documentary Speechless and the TRAs taking over the rights of women and LGB. People see those and, while some do say, that isn’t the law we need to be fair and sensible, others say that’s a bad law let’s do away with this. The worrying thing is that the people who will then suffer are women, disabled, LGB many of whom are already suffering because of TRA lunacy. We predicted this and I really didn’t want us to be right.

The law becomes irrelevant when we have governments in power, civil servants and public services that set out to break that law and are not held accountable for doing so.