Select committee: Women and Equalities Committee
Recommendation 47
2nd Report - Equality at work: Miscarriage and bereavement leave
Published 15 Jan 2025
Addressed to Government Equalities Office
Women and Equalities Committee Equality at work: miscarriage and bereavement leave All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
recommendation There has been good progress among employers in recent years in acknowledging miscarriage as a bereavement. An increasing number are establishing excellent pregnancy loss policies, including generous and flexible periods of paid leave for women and partners. The benefits, for employees and employers, of a generous and flexible approach are clear and far outweigh the minimal costs of establishing such schemes. However, we are concerned that such schemes are not always sufficiently well promoted. The Government should work with organisations including the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development, the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) and the Trades Union Congress, to promote the benefits of generous and flexible pre- 24-week pregnancy loss leave policies and strengthen guidance to ensure that, where such policies are in place, managers, employees, and prospective employees are aware of them.
From: Women and Equalities Committee, 2nd Report - Equality at work: Miscarriage and bereavement leave (HC 335), 15 January 2025
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 24 March 2025 (deadline 15 March 2025).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The Government "accepted the principle of bereavement leave for pregnancy loss" during the Employment Rights Bill Report Stage debate, but the response does not set out a statutory scheme or timetable.
- The Government "agrees that more can be done to support parents who experience pregnancy loss before 24 weeks" and recognises "the gap in support" for those who experience a pregnancy loss before 24 weeks.
- On the Committee's proposed amendments, the Department for Business and Trade "looks forward to further discussions with the Committee" on a statutory entitlement as the Bill moves to the House of Lords.
- On sick leave, the Government recognises that for many women the bereavement period "is not sick leave", but notes that Statutory Sick Pay can be used by those who are unwell due to symptoms related to pregnancy loss and unable to return to work.
- On promoting employer policies, the Government "will work with stakeholders such as CIPD, ACAS and TUC" to understand what can be done to highlight this work and "investigate where existing guidance can be strengthened further". No date is given.