New and expectant mothers


The Management Regulations contain specific provisions for women of childbearing age in the workforce. Regulation 16 says any risk assessment must take account of how hazards may affect the health and safety of new or expectant mothers. The employer should address risks from any work processes, working conditions or physical, biological or chemical agents.


A worker is not legally obliged to inform her employer that she is pregnant or breastfeeding. However, an employer who does not know about the pregnancy will not be able to address any specific risks that arise as a result. The HSE recommends that women workers inform their employers in writing as early as possible that they are pregnant, have given birth in the previous six months or are breastfeeding. Several specific pieces of legislation provide additional safety protection to expectant and new mothers in the workplace and are examined elsewhere in this booklet. These include:


• the Ionising Radiation Regulations 1999 (see Chapter 8: Physical Hazards);


• the Control of Electromagnetic Fields at Work Regulations 2016 (see Chapter 8: Physical Hazards):


• the Control of Lead at Work Regulations 1998 (see Chapter 6: Hazardous substances);


• the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 (see Chapter 5: The workplace and working environment); and


• the Equality Act 2010 which provides protection against discrimination on the grounds of sex, pregnancy and maternity (see below).


Is an employer obliged to carry out a specific separate risk assessment as soon as an employee confirms she is pregnant or breastfeeding?


Some workplaces present particular risks to pregnant workers. Whether an employer needs to carry out a separate risk assessment as soon as an employee confirms that she is pregnant or breastfeeding depends on the kind of work she does. There is no free-standing legal obligation on every employer always to conduct a specific separate risk assessment once a worker confirms that she is pregnant. Instead, whether or not a separate risk assessment is required will depend on the particular circumstances of the individual worker and the kind or work she is doing (O’Neill v Buckinghamshire County Council UKEAT/0020/09/JOJ). Even though there is no general obligation on an employer, carrying out a risk assessment is the most sensible way to identify what new risks are presented by the pregnancy and what extra action should be taken.


The employer should always discuss any concerns and ideas about solving them with the worker. It would be sex discrimination to force a worker to accept a change of duties or suspension where the risk is low and does not require such a drastic response, as the following Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) case shows: