‘It’s the right thing to do’: Dundee charity calls for paid leave after pregnancy loss

By Saskia Harper

July 18 2021, 8:00am

Experiencing a pregnancy loss can be emotionally complex and the thought of immediately returning to work can be difficult for many. A Dundee charity speaks out about the transformative impact paid leave could have on the healing process.

Alternatives Dundee is a local charity offering counselling and support for those who have been through a pregnancy loss, whether through miscarriage, still birth, termination or infertility.

Rachel Macdonald, the charity’s service lead, says: “As a society we don’t have a lot of good rituals or language around pregnancy loss.

“There’s a general perception that people should recover, it’s good they became pregnant so they should be moving on and looking forward.

“People are expected to go back to work immediately and to carry on as normal. Societally, we don’t have a place to acknowledge the impact of pregnancy loss for someone. That’s where it becomes complicated.”

‘It’s the right thing to do’

For those who have gone through a pregnancy loss, the thought of returning to work immediately can feel unmanageable and unrealistic.

Currently, the only legal requirement for employers to provide paid leave is for those whose baby was delivered stillborn after the 24th week of pregnancy.

This means many have to make the return to work before they feel ready to.

Rachel explains: “I’m utterly in favour of paid leave after pregnancy loss. I think it’s absolutely the right thing that we support men and women going through this.

“Knowing you have to return to work after something like that is really difficult.

Channel 4 has today announced its first ever dedicated pregnancy loss policy – believed to be the world’s first.@Channel4 is giving away the policy to make it even easier for companies to implement the same staff support.

Read more here: https://t.co/TCv2o3XpFL pic.twitter.com/KBAVGdxv2Q

— Channel 4 Press (@C4Press) April 26, 2021

“The message that sends is ‘you’re supposed to be OK’, but a person can be left feeling ‘well I’m not OK so what’s wrong with me?’ For others who realise it’s not about them but about the way society is set up, there can be quite a lot of anger and hurt.

“For some people, going back to work is very helpful because it gives them that normality. But for others it’s just too much.

“Having to fight for time off or getting signed off by your GP is just added stress to what’s already a really difficult situation”

Leading by example

Though it’s not yet a legal requirement, Rachel notes some employers already do offer paid leave to their staff.

She continues: “That we would expect people to go in and concentrate on work straight away would be very unrealistic.

“It’s not mandatory but a lot of workplaces do give some support and we would hope to see more of that. It’s just good leadership.

“Employers that look after people and support them following pregnancy loss are ultimately are going to end up with a much more productive, much happier workforce.

“Paid leave acknowledges the magnitude of what they’re experiencing. It honours what they’re experiencing.

“It says it’s important and significant and we recognise you might want to take time off. Most of the hurt arises when that’s not acknowledged.”

Supporting partners

Rachel believes not only would it be valuable to offer paid leave to those who have physically experienced the loss, but their partners, too.

She says: “Often partners don’t feel they have permission to need support or to be affected.

“For men, often their perceived role is to support their partner in the loss they have experienced. But what paid leave for partners would say is actually you matter too and it’s OK for you to also be impacted by this.

“It just takes a bit of pressure off and creates time and space at that very early stage to acknowledge together what’s happened.

“Then you can talk about it and process it together, whereas if life is just expected to carry on, that’s when things can become more complicated and more difficult further down the line.”

‘Get help as soon as you need it’

SNP MP, Angela Crawley, has presented a bill to the UK parliament that would entitle women to three days of paid leave following a miscarriage.

But until this becomes law, the choice to provide paid leave for pregnancy loss is down to the employer.

Rachel says: “What we don’t want people to do is just put their head down, block everything out and then end up really struggling further down the line.

Does PM agree that parents should receive formal miscarriage leave if a miscarriage occurs before 24 weeks? asks SNP's Angela Crawley

Boris Johnson says "no payment we could make would be any consolation to those who experience a miscarriage"#PMQs https://t.co/PBP9poMGYX pic.twitter.com/bgrA7T68q1

— BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) July 7, 2021