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baby blues?

We've all heard about how hard it can be for single and young mums to bring up their children without support or cash. But at the opposite end of the spectrum, what about the professional mums-to-be who are worried about motherhood and their career being in conflict? Sarah Robinson from Premier Law looks at how to deal with the issues a pregnancy and baby brings up at the management end of the workplace...

Is maternity harder for women in senior positions?

Many employees in senior roles work long hours with demanding schedules, if you add to that the difficulty of balancing the needs of an unborn child it can often be awkward to adapt to this new regime. Women in senior positions will also feel a stronger urge not to let the side down and will be reluctant to admit that they have back ache, sore feet or the myriad of other physical problems that can be associated with pregnancy and lets face it, they became senior members of the team because they are career driven and the last thing they will want to show is that they are in some way incapacitated by pregnancy. This is where and understanding boss needs to step in to make sure that there is a healthy work life balance.

So, what can companies do to make it less difficult for women before they go on maternity leave?

In the early stages it is important that the employer understands morning sickness, hopefully this phase of pregnancy doesn’t last too long, but it may mean frequent trips to the bathroom or late starts in the morning. Every employer should do a risk assessment with the pregnant worker in mind, a simple timetable adjustment may make life considerably easier for the mum to be. Every pregnant woman is entitled to time off for anti natal care and it is important that this right is taken seriously. In one case an employee was awarded £1000 for ‘injury to feelings’ because she had not been given time off to attend an ante natal appointment. Employers should also remember that so long as it is sanctioned by a health care professional ante natal appointments as diverse as aqua aerobics or relaxation classes should be allowed.

How can you encourage mums back to work?

The new regulations allow for ten ‘keeping in touch days’ to enable the employer and employee to become reacquainted after a prolonged period of absence. These days  which do not affect the maternity leave entitlement, should be paid, and can be used as training days to update the returning mother on new policies or procedures within the workplace or they can simply be used to allow the employee to get a feel for the upcoming return to work. Usually the biggest difficulty in returning to work is the need for childcare, assuming you ignore the psychological wrench of being away from baby for the first time. If a firm is in a position to offer crèche facilities this is without doubt the best solution, but being flexible about working times can also be a great help.

What can they do to help mums juggle the demands of children and work?

The flexible working regulations allow a new parent to ask their employer for the opportunity to work flexibly and while there is no definition of flexible working it can be anything that helps people to achieve a work life balance. Typical flexible working arrangements can be earlier finish times or later start times to fit in with childcare arrangements or the ability to work from home or to work part-time. Some people might like to fit a 37 hr week into 4 days rather than five.  Asking for flexible working is a right of all new parents and while the employer does not have to concede the request they do have to show that they have given it serious consideration and have only rejected it for one of the prescribed reasons.