3. Negative treatment faced by pregnant workers – the law in practice

This Chapter looks at some of the common workplace situations and topics that have given rise to problems for pregnant workers and returning mothers and how the law has dealt with them, ranging from before a woman gets the job to a situation where she is made redundant. As well as protection from discrimination under the Equality Act 2010 (EA 10), the law provides some protection from detrimental treatment and automatically unfair dismissal linked to pregnancy and maternity (Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA 96). There are also important rights in the Maternity and Parental Leave Regulations 1999 (MPRL 99) and the Shared Parental Leave Regulations 2014 (SPL 14).