Working conditions while pregnant

kilburn

Hi folks,
not sure if this is the right forum but said i would post here as it boils down to maternity protection and employment law?

My wife is pregant and works in retail, she does various shifts which could start at 9am at the earliest and finish at 10pm at the latest.

She is struggling lately with the late shifts she found it very draining and tiring to work three 2-10 shifts last week and this week has been given a 12-10 shift, she approached her employer and said look i have no problem working but i am finding the 8hr shifts standing all day and finishing at 10pm very hard and that a ten hour shift would be very difficult. Her employer informed her just because she was pregnant she was not entitled to be treated different to other workers, they changed the shift to a shorter one but informed her that she would work what ever shifts she was given in the future.

On my limited understanding of employment law and pregnancy issues I would have thought that a pregnant employee was covered under the health and safety at work regulations under physical fatigue or physical burdens or am I wrong?

She is not a slacker and very quiet so hope that i can point her in the right direction with some of your help.

Not looking for legal advice just various points of view on the legal interpretation of the maternity acts

Procrastastudy

kilburn wrote: »

Her employer informed her just because she was pregnant she was not entitled to be treated different to other workers, they changed the shift to a shorter one but informed her that she would work what ever shifts she was given in the future.

Her employer is wrong. Have a read of http://www.employmentrights.ie/en/ website. With it being retail there is probably at least a dozen other things they are at that they shouldn't be.

mitzicat

Her Employer is also required to do a risk assessment anytime he/she is notified one of her/his employees is pregnant. The mandate is they have to identity risks and move them away from the pregnant worker - or move the pregnant worker away from them. One of the general risks is posture that may cause excessive fatigue.

Her boss sounds like a meathead.

http://www.hsa.ie/eng/Workplace_Health/Sensitive_Risk_Groups/Pregnant_at_Work_FAQ_Responses/Pregnant_at_Work_FAQ_Responses.html#leg1

She must be quiet because if it was me, my husband would be writing on here, "my pregnant wife has been charged with assaulting her meathead boss - what I should I do?".....not that violence is ever the answer.

Victor

She may be entitled to take Health and Safety leave and receive an allowance.