From 6 April 2024, the Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Act 2023 will come into force. The Act will enhance protection from redundancy for new or expectant parents. At the moment parents on maternity, adoption or shared parental leave (SPL) are protected from redundancy during the period of their leave. This means that if there is a prospect of redundancy, then a suitable alternative job must be offered. Failure to do so could be automatic unfair dismissal and discriminatory.
Pregnancy and maternity are protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010.
Under the current law, protection against redundancy begins at the point when an expectant mother tells their employer about their pregnancy. It ends either at the end of their statutory maternity leave or two weeks after the end of their pregnancy where there is no statutory leave.
Under the new rules, the additional protected period begins when an expectant mother informs their employer of their pregnancy and ends 18 months after birth, if they tell their employer the birth date before their maternity leave ends. The same applies to adoption leave but instead equates to 18 months after a child’s placement date or entry date into the UK if adopting from abroad.
In the event of a miscarriage, around which employers should display extra care and sensitivity, the protected window is two weeks after the pregnancy if it was less than 24 weeks or for the entire statutory maternity leave period if longer.
With SPL lasting less than six weeks, the protected window lasts until the leave is over. If parents take more than six weeks of SPL, then the protected window lasts until 18 months after a child’s date of birth.
There are protected windows that employers should ensure they are aware of and they should also consider suitable alternative roles. If an employer fails to take steps the result could be a finding of automatic unfair dismissal resulting in uncapped compensation.
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