Rest breaks for pregnant employees

CIPD HR-inform

Stacie Cheadle, technical writer at Croner, explains the issues to consider with pregnant employees from rest facilities to medical suspensions.

Q. Do pregnant employees need to be given access to a bed for rest whenever they wish during working hours? One of our office-based employees is currently pregnant. She has insisted that we provide a bed for her if she needs to rest, and that she should be able to go to it whenever she wants.

A. Every pregnancy is different. Some women may experience health problems that will require them to take more breaks than others, so a sympathetic approach is the best to take.

The Workplace (Health, Safety & Welfare) Regulations 1992 require employers to provide suitable rest facilities for workers who are pregnant or breastfeeding. Facilities should be suitably located, for example near a toilet, and where necessary an employer should provide appropriate facilities for the new or expectant mother to lie down.

As a business, you may already have these facilities available such as a changing room or first aid room, and she could be directed to take her rest breaks there.

If her doctor or a registered midwife has made these recommendations, then it is worth considering what you can provide as the health and safety of a new or expectant mother must not be compromised by her work.

It may be that, if you cannot accommodate her request and this puts her health and safety (or that of her unborn baby) at risk, she will need a period of medical suspension, and this could mean that she would not be able to work until after the birth of her baby.

Have a chat with her and consider the practical options together. Establish whether there is a particular health issue that requires her to rest often during the working day. Discuss the number of breaks that she believes to be necessary and for how long for.

Highlight the existing facilities that can be used for rest breaks and arrange for a workstation assessment to be carried out to look at whether her chair or workstation set up can be adjusted to provide greater comfort.

If your company employs women of childbearing age, it is worth considering these factors for this case and any others that will arise in the future.

By Stacie Cheadle, technical writer at Croner

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