Women and Equalities Committee welcomes minister’s commitment to ‘vital’ miscarriage bereavement leave law change
11 March 2025
Introducing statutory bereavement leave for those who miscarry during pregnancy, in new employment laws “will make a vital difference”, the Women and Equalities Committee Chair Sarah Owen has said.
In its January report WEC concluded a period of paid leave “should be available to all women and partners who experience a pre-24-week pregnancy loss”, adding “the case for a minimum standard in law is overwhelming”.
The report’s central recommendation announced the Committee’s intention to table amendments to the Government’s flagship Employment Rights Bill in the name of WEC’s Chair Labour MP Sarah Owen and called on Ministers to support or adopt them.
In today’s Employment Right Bill Commons debate, the Government indicated it accepted the need for bereavement leave for pregnancy loss and would have further discussions with the Lords on the matter during the passage of the Bill.
Paying tribute to WEC’s Chair, the Committee and campaigners, Business and Trade Minister Justin Madders said WEC’s report “demonstrated a clear gap in support”, adding the Government “fully accept the principle of bereavement leave for pregnancy loss”. He said “bereavement is not an illness” and pregnancy loss “does need its own special category”.
While there is no commitment yet to statutory pay, such a law change would bring statutory leave in line with existing provision for baby loss after 24 weeks. The report found clear evidence that the impacts pre and post 24 weeks are very similarly felt as bereavement. Currently there is no statutory acknowledgement of the grief many women and their partners will feel after a pre-24-week pregnancy loss and the effects this may have on their working lives, it said.
WEC’s report cited data estimating that more than one in five pregnancies end before 24 weeks, adding that about one in five women will experience a miscarriage in their reproductive lifetime.
The amendment includes those who experience miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, molar pregnancy, in vitro fertilisation embryo transfer loss, and terminations for medical reasons.
Chair comment
“It’s hugely welcome that the Government has listened to those calling for statutory bereavement leave for pre-24-week pregnancy losses. As the Women and Equalities Committee’s January report on miscarriage and bereavement leave recommended, the case for a minimum standard in law is overwhelming.
“Miscarriages and other pre-24-week pregnancy losses can be devastating for women and their families with both emotional and physical consequences. Like many women, I know that when you lose a pregnancy, you are not sick, you are grieving and it is an overwhelmingly positive step to see government recognising this need for all workers.
“The Government’s commitment to explore options for change during the House of Lords’ consideration of the Employment Rights Bill is welcome. While the Government has not yet committed to the statutory paid leave we called for, its commitment to explore options on leave is tangible progress and will make a vital difference to those who experience the heartbreak of pregnancy loss.
“A change in the law on miscarriage bereavement leave would make the UK one of only four countries in the world that have set a marker for employers to recognise that all those who experience the physical and emotional pain of pregnancy loss can take the time they need to grieve.”
Speaking in the Chamber, the Chair said:
“This change means that the law will finally catch up with society’s views on pregnancy loss. It is a giant leap forward in the recognition that miscarrying is a bereavement, not an illness and workers will legally have the right to grieve.”