Sick pay

It is pregnancy discrimination for any sick pay scheme (contractual or discretionary) to exclude sick pay for pregnancy-related illness during pregnancy. It makes no difference how much service the woman has.

A female worker who is off work when pregnant with a pregnancy-related illness is entitled to the same contractual sick pay as her fellow workers. She is not entitled to better sick pay than other workers who are not pregnant, unless her contract gives her this right (North Western Health Board v McKenna [2005] IRLR 895).

If a woman is off work because of pregnancy during the four weeks before her maternity leave start date, an employer is entitled to require her to start her maternity leave early (regulation 4(3), Maternity and Parental Leave Regulations 1999 (MPLR 99)). Some employers may agree to overlook odd days of pregnancy-related absence. There is more information about maternity leave in Chapter 6.

If a woman falls ill during her maternity leave, she is not entitled to sick pay (either statutory or contractual). This is because her right to “pay” is replaced during maternity leave by a right to Statutory Maternity Pay or Maternity Allowance, or any contractual equivalent (see Chapter 6).

Reps should carefully check the terms and conditions at any workplace where a union is recognised, to see what improvements to sick pay terms for pregnant workers may have been negotiated.