INTRODUCTION

Pregnancy in the workplace can pose challenges for organisations and managers. Under Irish legislation, additional health, safety and welfare obligations will apply once an employer has been notified of an employee’s pregnancy.  An employer should commit to successfully managing the health and safety aspects from the outset to protect the employee and also the business itself.

LEGISLATION

Under Irish legislation, namely the Safety Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, employers have a legal obligation to identify hazards in the workplace and to assess the risk presented by any workplace hazards.  This process, including the documentation of risks in writing, is commonly known as risk assessment.

A risk assessment is done as part of the employer’s Safety Statement and is required in all workplaces.

The Pregnancy at Work Regulations, which form part of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations 2007 (“the Regulations”) apply when an employee informs her employer that she is pregnant, has recently given birth or is breastfeeding, and provides an appropriate medical certificate.  The original risk assessment should already have identified any hazards that may present a risk during pregnancy. The risk assessment specifically required by the Regulations should therefore be a re-appraisal of these hazards.

Once an employer becomes aware that an employee is pregnant, they must assess the specific risks from the employment to that employee and take action to ensure that she is not exposed to anything, which would damage either her health or that of her developing child.

If a risk is identified and cannot be removed from the workplace, the employer must take action to address the situation by either:

1. temporarily adjusting the employee’s working conditions/working hours to the extent that the risk is eliminated; and /or
2. facilitating the employee doing other work, or in the case of night workers transferring to day work.

Section 18 of the Maternity Protection Act 1994 sets out that if an employer cannot remove or eliminate a risk to a pregnant employee’s health, the employee will be eligible to a period of health and safety leave.  The leave itself is paid by the employer for the first 21 days, thereafter health and safety benefit may be payable,depending on the employee’s PRSI contribution.  During the period of the health and safety leave, the employee is still considered to be in employment, will continue to accumulate annual leave entitlement however will not be entitled to payment for public holidays that occur during the leave. Any consideration of health and safety leave should only be done following the completion of a detailed risk assessment process, carried out in conjunction with the employer’s overall safety statement. Once the risk has ceased/has been eliminated, the employee must return to the workplace.

RISKS

The EU Commission has drawn up guidelines on the assessment of the chemical, physical and biological agents and industrial processes considered dangerous for the health and safety of female workers. The guidelines also covers physical movements and postures, mental and physical fatigue and other types of physical and mental stress.

Main hazards for a pregnant employee include:

• Chemicals, including substances that cause cancer, mercury, carbon monoxide
• Biological agents including viruses, bacteria etc.
• Ionising and non-ionising radiation
• Physical shocks, including direct blows to the abdomen
• Vibrations of the whole body
• Heavy lifting
• Excessive heat or cold
• Movement and postures that are abrupt/severe or give rise to excessive fatigue
• Excessive noise

Pregnant employees should also not work in compressed air environments and should not engage in manual work in underground mines. For the more adventurous, if diving is part of a pregnant employee’s occupation, she is advised to not dive due to the risk to the unborn child of being in a hyperbaric environment.

Practically speaking, a pregnant employee should not be exposed to long working hours as this can affect the health of the employee and her unborn child. A pregnant employee should not be confined to a work place that does not adequately expand to her increased abdominal size. A pregnant employee should not carry out work alone, due to the risk of them needing urgent medical care. Employers should avoid allocating night working to pregnant employees where possible, due to the increased likelihood of slips, aggressive incidents and fatigue.

Employers must ensure that adequate seating is made available to pregnant employees, to ensure they are not exposed to long periods of continuous standing. Regular breaks should be granted where the job involves a large portion of sitting. Toilet facilities should be easily accessible.

POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

In addition to statutory obligations, an employer should examine their systems, policies and procedures to ensure the pregnant employee feels protected at all stages.

Findings should be recorded, reviewed and updated as necessary throughout the employee’s pregnancy.  Regular meetings and the operation of an open-door policy throughout the pregnancy should increase the opportunity to identify any health and safety issues that may arise. All information relating to the pregnancy must be treated confidentially.

EMPLOYEE RESPONSIBILITY

The pregnant employee themselves will also have certain responsibilities in terms of managing their pregnancy and not putting herself or her developing child at undue risk or harm.  As the earliest stages of pregnancy are the most critical ones for the developing child, it is in the employee’s best interest to let her employer know she is pregnant as soon as possible. Encouraging a culture of engagement between the employer and the employee in managing the overall process especially the risk assessment stage is crucial given the employees’ health may change during the course of her pregnancy. All risk assessments and consultations should occur in conjunction with the Health and Safety Officer on site.

CONCLUSION

By fostering and promoting a supportive and safe environment, pregnant employees should continue to perform to the best of their abilities. An employer who, on notice of a pregnancy, does not take corrective action where necessary, is exposing itself to health and safety prosecution and personal injury claims.  All the same, employers should be guided by the carrot that such precautions are for benefit of the employee, the business and society as a whole and not by the stick of potential claims by failing to act upon its obligations.