Baby Loss Awareness Week: what can employers do to support?
In recognition of Baby Loss Awareness Week next month (9-15 October), we look at the statutory obligations and how workplaces can support staff affected by baby and pregnancy loss.
The inaugural baby loss awareness day was on October 15 2002 and was initiated by a group of parents. The annual campaign is now organized by the Baby Loss Awareness Alliance, which has a working party formed of six charities. These are:
- Sands – saving babies lives. Supporting bereaved families
- Bliss – for babies born premature or sick
- The Ectopic Pregnancy Trust
- The lullaby trust – safer sleep for babies, support for families
- The Miscarriage Association; and
- Tommy’s
Baby Loss Awareness Week is described by them as an opportunity:
- To support bereaved parents and families and to unite with others across the world to commemorate their babies’ lives and lost pregnancies
- To raise awareness about pregnancy and baby loss
- To drive improvements in care and support for anyone affected and in the prevention of pregnancy and baby loss
How can you support this campaign?
Organisations can show their support for Baby Loss Awareness week in a number of ways. There are template posters and social media banners on the website, workplaces can hold an event or order pink and blue pins that staff can opt to wear. John Lewis is a big supporter of the campaign and in 2023 it lit up it’s flagship store in London in shades of pink and blue to mark the start of Baby Loss Awareness Week.
Support for your workforce
If you are reading this article and interested in supporting Baby Loss Awareness Week, then chances are you might also be wondering what support you are required to have in place and what opportunities there might be to enhance that.
Pregnancy and baby loss can occur in the form of miscarriage or stillbirth. A stillbirth happens when a baby is not born alive after 24 or more weeks of pregnancy, occurring in about 1 in every 200 births in England. If a baby dies before 24 weeks, this is considered a miscarriage of late foetal loss.
These distinctions are important when it comes to the statutory entitlements available to employees. When a baby is stillborn after 24 weeks or born alive at any stage but does not survive (referred to as neonatal death), all legal rights related to childbirth apply. This includes entitlement to maternity leave.
- Maternity leave begins the day after the birth if it hasn’t started already.
- Employees can return to work before the end of maternity leave by giving eight weeks’ notice. An employer may accept a shorter notice period, but employees cannot return during the first two weeks after the birth due to compulsory maternity leave regulations.
- Both parents may also be eligible for statutory parental bereavement leave and pay in cases of stillbirth or neonatal death, in addition to maternity and paternity leave.
If a miscarriage occurs within the first 24 weeks of pregnancy, it is not legally classified as childbirth. As a result, parents are not entitled to statutory maternity, paternity, or parental bereavement leave. However, any necessary leave can be treated as pregnancy-related sickness under standard sickness policies.
Opportunities to offer additional support
In recognition of the challenge any form of baby loss can have on affected staff, some employers choose to offer additional support to any statutory entitlements. This can include a period of paid leave and support in cases of pregnancy loss at any stage. Some employers have taken a more proactive approach and developed specific policies covering miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal death, unsuccessful fertility treatments, and abortion.
These polices can cover things like what an employee should do if they suffer a miscarriage whilst at work, signpost employees to internal support systems such as an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) or a pregnancy or baby loss champion, if there is one, to explain entitlements to leave and pay. Recognising that baby loss can be a very individual experience, some employers choose to involve their staff in the development of any such policies, to ensure the support offered is relevant and meaningful for all staff. Taking this approach can really help to demonstrate an organisation’s commitment to supporting employees and provide a clear framework and reference point to help everyone during what is likely to be a very distressing time for the individuals affected.
Baby Loss Awareness week is an opportunity to actively showcase your support with communication campaigns and events. As with many sensitive topics, creating the space for discussion is often the starting point and can facilitate opportunities for further engagement. But most of all, a genuinely compassionate, supportive and thoughtful approach is likely to be hugely appreciated and give individuals one less thing to worry about as they recover from their loss.
