Health and Safety in the Workplace

Following on from the new guidance from HSE regarding pregnancy and new mothers in the workplace, here is your brief guide on correct health and safety procedures to ensure the safety and wellbeing of your employee(s).

Employer duties:

As an employer, you are responsible for providing a safe environment while effectively managing risks to the health and safety of ALL employees. 

If an employee is a pregnant or a new mother, you are required to carry out an individual risk assessment. This only applies to workers who are:

• Pregnant

• Have given birth within the last 6 months

• Breastfeeding

The risk assessment is to ensure that you are aware of any working conditions or processes that may harm the worker or their child. The assessment will then allow you to control the situation effectively, reducing the risk of harm.

When a worker informs you of pregnancy:

Your employee has informed you that they are pregnant; if they have informed you via written word, then you are obliged to create an individual risk assessment and make any necessary changes to support them throughout. 

This also applies for pregnant or new mothers who are gig, agency, or temporary workers. Regarding health and safety, the employer should be treated no different than other workers.

You can find out more about the health & safety requirements for gig, agency, or temporary workers.

Guidance for workers:

If you are an employee and are pregnant, a new mother, or breastfeeding, then you should definitely check out this short guide to your rights within the workplace. It covers how to tell your employer, how your individual risk assessment should work, actions your employer should take to protect you, and much more useful information. 

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