The UK Government announced on 22 October stronger protection against unfair dismissal for pregnant women and new parents. Employers will need to show they considered every reasonable alternative before dismissing someone in these situations.
The protection also covers people on adoption leave, shared parental leave, neonatal care leave and bereaved partner’s paternity leave. Employment tribunals will apply a stricter proportionality test in these cases.
According to the government, tribunals will apply the new approach from October 2027. A survey by the charity Pregnant Then Screwed, cited in the announcement, found that 73% of women report pregnancy or maternity discrimination.
