New and Expectant Mothers at Work Guidance Note
Page 1 of 12
New and Expectant Mothers at Work Guidance Note
Contents
Page
1.0
Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3
2.0
Legal Requirements……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3
3.0
Responsibilities…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3
4.0
Rest Facilities for Pregnant and Breast Feeding Women……………………………………………………
4
5.0
Associated Documents…………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 4
Appendix 1 Stage one – Initial risk assessment……………………………………………………………………………
5
Appendix 2 Stage two – On notification of pregnancy, birth or breastfeeding ……………………………
6
Appendix 3 Pregnancy Health and Safety Checklist ……………………………………………………………………
7
Appendix 4 Aspects of Pregnancy that may affect work ……………………………………………………………
9
Appendix 5 Working Conditions Assessment ………………………………………………………………………………
10
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1.0
Introduction
1.1
This guidance document has been developed to describe the standards to be applied to
ensure the health, safety and welfare of new and expectant mothers. Managers and
supervisors must understand that being pregnant is not classed as an illness. It should be
regarded as part of everyday life and the health and safety implications can be addressed by
the same normal health and safety management that applies to all workplace hazards and
risks.
1.2
Many women continue to work while they are pregnant and many return to work following
their maternity leave. Some new mothers may return to work while they are still breastfeeding.
1.3
Any female who is pregnant must inform their manager or supervisor in writing as soon as
possible in order for them to comply with the employer’s responsibilities.
2.0
Legal Requirements
2.1
The University has a duty of care for the health, safety and welfare of all employees whilst at
work under the Health and Safety at Work Act. The Management of Health and Safety at
Work Regulations, specifically requires assessment of the risks to the health and safety of
new or expectant mothers.
2.2
Other regulations such as the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations and
the Manual Handling Operations Regulations also require specific assessments to be carried
out.
2.3
The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations require suitable rest facilities to be
provided for pregnant or nursing mothers.
3.0
Responsibilities
3.1
Managers are required to carry out risk assessments and evaluate the significant hazards
associated with the workplace to new and/or expectant mothers. The assessment should
eliminate the risk or control it to an acceptable level. If the risk cannot be avoided by other
means, then a change will need to be made to the working conditions or hours, other
suitable alternative work will need to be offered, or if that is not possible then the employee
should be given paid leave for as long as is necessary to protect her health and safety and
that of her child.
3.2
Following the completion of an initial risk assessment (appendix 1), a specific risk
assessment should be undertaken each time you are informed of a pregnancy or each time
an employee returns from maternity leave within six months of giving birth or when they are
still breastfeeding (appendix 2). To assist you in this process a Pregnancy Health and Safety
Checklist has been compiled (appendix 3). If you answer yes to any of the questions on the
checklist some advice on appropriate actions can be found in appendix 4. Further guidance
on aspects of pregnancy that may affect work and which you will need to consider as part of
the risk assessment can be found in appendix 5.
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4.0
Rest Facilities for Pregnant and Breast Feeding Women
4.1
Many pregnant women feel tired and need to rest. Breastfeeding mothers need a clean,
private place to express and store their milk. Employers are legally required to provide
suitable rest facilities for workers who are pregnant or breastfeeding. Also, although not a
legal requirement, employers are encouraged to provide a healthy and safe environment for
nursing mothers to express and store milk. This could be provided in the suitable rest
facilities. It is not suitable for toilets to be used for this purpose.
5.0
Associated Documents

Maternity Policy
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Appendix 1
Stage one – Initial risk assessment
NO
Inform
employees
of outcomes
Are there
any
hazards
present?
YES
Inform workers of the
risk and the need to
notify you of the
pregnancy or if they
are breastfeeding or
have given birth in the
last six months, as
early as possible.
Assess
risks,
reduce or
remove if
possible
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Appendix 2
Stage two – On notification of pregnancy, birth or breastfeeding
Carry out a specific risk assessment based on initial assessment
Has a risk been
identified?
NO
YES
YES
Remove Risk
NO
Monitor and
review
Adjust
conditions/hours
Action 3
Suspend her from
work on paid
YES
leave for as long
as necessary to
protect her
health and safety,
or that of her
child
Can the risk be
removed?
YES
Action 1
Can the mother’s working
conditions/hours of work be
adjusted?
NO
NO
Action 2
Can she be
given
suitable
alternative
work
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YES
Give suitable
alternative
work on same
terms and
conditions
Appendix 3
Pregnancy Health and Safety Checklist
The workplace can present extra hazards to pregnant women, use our checklist to help you identify them. It’s
divided into four sections, which look at physical and mental job demands as well as working conditions.
Carrying out a risk assessment on a pregnant worker is a legal requirement. Use this checklist to highlight any
particular areas that this assessment will need to focus on.
It is important to discuss with the pregnant woman any potential risks to ensure no adverse impact on her
wellbeing. If answering YES to any question and it is not imposing a health risk please document in the ACTION
column.
Pregnancy health and safety checklist
1. Physical Job Demands
- Does the work involve:
o Lifting or pushing heavy objects e.g. lifting boxes?
o Standing or squatting for long periods?
o A lot of walking?
o Working at height or climbing steep steps?
o The need to access areas with limited space, e.g. store
rooms?
-
Will any tasks become more hazardous to the worker’s changing
shape and size?
-
Does the role involve shift work?
-
Does the role involve night work?
2. Stress/Fatigue Demands
- Does the job involve meeting challenging deadlines?
-
Does the role involve rapidly changing priorities and demands?
-
Does the role require a high degree of concentration?
3. Working Conditions
- Does the work involve lone working or working in remote
locations?
(If lone worker – a lone worker risk assessment should be
carried out)
-
Does the role involve home working?
-
Are toilet facilities easily accessible to a pregnant worker?
-
Is the worker able to take toilet breaks when necessary?
-
Can the worker take rest breaks when needed?
-
Can the worker control the pace of her work?
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YES
NO
ACTION
-
Pregnancy health and safety checklist
Are there any risks of violence at work?
-
Does any part of the job involve dealing with members of the
public/students?
If so, does the role involve:
o Dealing with distressed or disturbed people?
o Contact with young children or sick people?
o Unpredictable working hours?
o Dealing with emergencies?
-
Are there any obstacles in corridors or offices that could cause
problems for pregnant women, e.g. in the event of fire
evacuations?
-
Is there any other form of indoor air pollution, e.g. diesel fumes?
-
Is the temperature in her working environment reasonable?
-
Is there enough room for the worker to get in and out of her
workstation?
-
Will there be enough room as the pregnancy develops?
-
Does the worker have an adjustable seat, e.g. with backrest?
(Advise – Review Workstation Assessment as per DSE
Regulations)
YES
NO
4. Specific Hazards
- Does any part of the job involve the use of chemicals?
If so, please consult COSHH documents to determine if there are
any risks to the worker whilst she is pregnant or nursing.
-
Does the worker need to wear personal protective clothing?
If so, will this present a problem as the pregnancy develops?
5. Return to Work
- Would rest facilities be required for breastfeeding, expressing or
storing milk?
-
Where would rest facilities be available?
This risk assessment checklist has been completed to the best of my knowledge
Signed: ………………………………………………………………. Date ……………………………………………………
Line Manager
Signed:……………………………………………………………….. Date…………………………………………………..
Employee
NOTE: This checklist is to be retained on file for at least three years
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ACTION
Appendix 4
Aspects of Pregnancy that may affect work
Apart from the general hazards in the workplace, there are other aspects of pregnancy that may affect the
new or expectant mother’s work. The impact will vary during the course of the pregnancy and managers
and supervisors will need to keep their effects under review, for example the posture of expectant
mothers alters to cope with the increasing size.
Aspects of Pregnancy
Morning sickness
Headaches
Factors in Work
 Early shift work
 Travelling in rush hours
 Exposure to nauseating smells
Backache




Standing or sitting for prolonged periods of time
Posture
Manual handling
Repetitive manual handling
Varicose veins


Standing or sitting for prolonged periods of time
Inadequate seating
Haemorrhoids

Working in hot conditions
Frequent visits to the toilet


Difficulty in leaving job
Site of work/location of toilets
Increasing size




Use of PPE/uniform
Work in confined areas
Manual Handling
Working environment
Tiredness




Shift patterns (i.e. night work)
Evening work
Overtime
Lone Working
Balance


Problems of working on slippery wet surfaces
Slips and trips
Comfort

Problems with working environment and workspace
Dexterity, agility, coordination, speed
of movement, reach

May be impaired because of increasing size as pregnancy
progresses
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Appendix 5
Working Conditions Assessment
Area of Consideration
Stress/Anxiety
How to Avoid the Risk
 Regular meetings/support from the manager.
 Reduction of workload during pregnancy if necessary and
phased return to work.
 Provision of counselling.
Fatigue



Provision for resting.
Ability to alternate between standing and sitting.
Adequate breaks between shifts (11 hours)
Workstation

Is the desk suitably adjustable to allow the worker to get close
enough?
Is there adequate space around the workstation for access and
egress? – consider the increasing size of the employee
Is the temperature within the room comfortable or too hot?
Is there any reaching or stretching to access equipment on the
workstation?



Chair





Is the chair suitable?
Does it offer adequate support with adjustability?
Is the seat depth adequate?
Can the employee place her feet flat on the floor or footrest?
Does the employee know how to adjust the chair?
Driving

Consider change of hours to prevent employee travelling in
rush hour.
If part of work – employee may have difficulty driving later on
in the pregnancy due to size.
Frequent exposure to whole body vibration can increase the
risk of miscarriage.
Risk assess the frequency, duration and environment of
driving during pregnancy and post natal.



Lone Worker – concerns can cause
anxiety, which may result in raised
blood pressure and complications
during pregnancy and birth.



Emergency procedure.
Risk assessment for lone worker who is pregnant.
Later on in pregnancy it would be advisable to not allow
employee to work alone for health and safety reasons.
Night Shift Workers


Offer suitable alternative daytime work if available.
Suspend from work for as long as is necessary to protect her
health and safety.
This is only a requirement if the employee produces a
medical certificate stating night work could affect her health
and safety or on advice from the Occupational Health
Adviser.

Listeria (organism found in soil)

Ensure that hands are thoroughly washed after working with
soil or unwashed vegetables, especially salad vegetables.
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Hepatitis B and C, HIV, TB, Typhoid





Chicken Pox


Rubella (German Measles)


Safe working practices should be adopted and standard
infection control precautions followed to control transmission.
Each department where there is a risk of exposure must have
a policy with a 24 hr emergency procedure in place should an
employee be exposed to transmission. Advice to inform
Occupational Health and visit A&E Department, consult
Midwife.
If there is a known high risk exposure to a highly infectious
agent, then it will be appropriate for the pregnant worker to
avoid exposure altogether.
PPE must be freely available to prevent contamination.
Employee must be encouraged to inform her midwife or GP as
soon as exposure is suspected and review of preventative
systems undertaken immediately.
Employee must not be exposed to working with any person or
child who is suspected of having chicken pox if they have not
had the disease themselves.
GP or Midwife must be informed immediately if employee has
come into contact with chicken pox and they have not had it.
Again, employee must not knowingly be exposed to working
alongside someone who is suspected to be suffering with, or
has rubella.
GP or midwife must be informed so appropriate action can be
taken.
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New and Expectant Mothers at Work Guidance Note
Date of Issue:
February 2012
Next review date:
February 2015
Approved by (e.g. Committee, Director, etc):
Date of last approval:
February 2012
Author/Owner:
Occupational Health Adviser
Department:
Human Resources
This document can be obtained from the Human Resources website, Docushare or by contacting Human
Resources (0191 515 2055).
If you would like this document in larger print please contact Human Resources.
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