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Working mothers
cannot afford full maternity leave: Usdaw welcomes plans for longer leave but also wants better pay A new survey by UNI Commerce affiliate Usdaw reveals that new mothers are being driven back to the shop floor too soon after giving birth. They just cannot afford to take their full statutory maternity leave. Usdaw discovered that a shocking 78% of new mothers working in Britain’s retail stores would have liked more time off with their new babies, but went back on average six weeks before their statutory maternity pay ran out. The survey also found that two-thirds of those going back early went back because they just couldn’t afford to stay off and the union found the average cost of taking a full 12 months off at home was a staggering £7000. Huge sum of money for members to lose, John Hannett says “That’s a huge sum of money for our members to lose and is what most families spend running their homes every year so this is the kind of financial blow that many low paid workers will take years to recover from,” says John Hannett, Usdaw General Secretary. “That’s why we welcome government plans to extend the length of paid maternity leave, but we intend making the clear case for maternity pay to be increased.” New dads face the same desperate economic dilemma with every father surveyed wanting more paid paternity leave but reported they just couldn’t afford to take extra unpaid leave to spend with their new born child. In response to these alarming figures Home Office Minister Hazel Blears launched the north west’s Supporting Parents and Carers campaign that puts improving parents rights at the heart of their negotiating strategy with employers and government. Labour committed to longer maternity leave “Hard working families and working mothers will be at the heart of Labour’s agenda for a third term,” Hazel Blears said. “We are committed to increasing paid statutory maternity leave to nine months by 2007 and 12 months by the end of the next Parliament.” “I understand the need to support workers who have parental responsibilities and it is important that Usdaw is making a real commitment to increasing workplace provision in negotiation with some of Britain’s biggest retailers.” “We think the focus of the current debate about maternity rights needs shifting,” John Hannett. “Women have always had babies and will continue to do so, but what’s changed is that there are record numbers of women in work and so employers have to get to grips with this issue like never before.” “The fact is that most women will need to take maternity leave at some point in their lives so we are focusing on how we make pregnancy and maternity leave a positive experience for every woman not just those who can afford it. That’s why we are making a strong case to government for better maternity pay and also working with progressive employers to develop maternity agreements that build on the rights government has already given.”
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