The UK Government recently announced a series of amendments to the Employment Rights Bill; changes that have now been passed to the House of Lords, and which build upon existing proposals to increase the rights of working people.

Three notable amendments relate to pregnancy loss bereavement leave, paid leave entitlement for carers, and domestic abuse leave – updates that, if passed into law, will support and protect employees across the board. But while these amendments may offer relatively modest statutory provisions, the nature of these changes – and their collective impact – could prove particularly valuable for working women.

Pregnancy loss bereavement leave

The Employment Rights Bill would legislate two weeks’ bereavement leave for parents who experience pregnancy loss (miscarriage or stillbirth) before 24 weeks’ gestation. This would extend current legislation, which applies from the 24th week of pregnancy, giving mothers more time to recover physically and providing both parents with space to grieve.

It’s an extension that’s entirely welcome, of course, and one that makes sense from both the employee and employer perspective: employees who return to work before they’re ready are unlikely to thrive, and understandably so. They also risk prolonging their physical and emotional recoveries, creating the potential for more absence and reduced productivity over time.

Sadly, with one in five UK pregnancies ending in miscarriage or stillbirth, baby loss affects ~250,000 working women (and their partners) every year – statistics that speak to the value of employers investing in effective support, and not just from a legislative standpoint but with the individual’s needs and personal circumstances in mind. Suffice to say, grief has no timeline and although two weeks’ bereavement leave would be a marked increase on current entitlement, this isn’t to say it would be enough for every employee. The opportunity therefore involves employers going beyond what is legally required of them, building employee wellbeing and retention in the process.

As part of the Bill, the Government also plans to add further protections for women and employees who are pregnant, on maternity leave, or who have recently returned to work. Once again, this would serve to improve women’s rights at work, making it easier for them to stay in employment, secure their financial futures, and contribute to wider economic growth.

Carer’s leave as a paid entitlement

Another amendment proposes paid leave for carers. If passed into law, this would build upon The Carer’s Leave Act 2023, which provides employees in England, Scotland, and Wales with the right to one week of unpaid leave each year.

There are 5.8 million people in the UK who juggle employment with their responsibilities as an unpaid carer. According to the 2021 Census, there are also more women carers than men (59% vs 41%), with people between 50 and 59 making up the biggest age demographic.

But we already knew this: anecdotally speaking, it tends to be daughters, more than sons, who care for elderly parents. And right when these women are reaching the top of their career game, many are effectively being forced out of the workforce. In fact, research from Carers UK suggests that as many as 600 people give up work every day to become a full-time carer, most of them women.

Providing carers with one week’s paid leave would be a step in the right direction but it’s a sticking plaster solution. The potential for more lasting and meaningful progress lies with the employer in the form of flexible working, reasonable adjustments, and enabling employees to take unpaid leave when they need a break. This is how organisations can actually enable unpaid carers to remain in employment whilst supporting their physical and mental health – and at scale, the potential productivity gains are substantial.

Statutory domestic abuse leave

Also added to the Bill is a new clause that would provide statutory leave for victims of domestic abuse, with regulations providing for a minimum of ten days’ leave. Workers would also be protected from adverse treatment and/or dismissal on the grounds that they are, or are suspected to be, a person affected by domestic abuse. And in a landmark shift, employers would also be duty bound to take all reasonable steps to prevent their employees from experiencing domestic abuse.

There are still questions as to how the latter would work in practice but there’s no doubt that these amendments would provide victims, the vast majority of which are women, with much needed additional support.

As many as 84% of domestic abuse victims are female, and one in four women will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime. Put into context, this means that in a company with 1,000 female employees, tens if not hundreds of women will have first-hand experience.

So how would statutory leave support these victims?

Understandably, women (and men) who experience the trauma of domestic abuse will require time off work. Employees may need to organise alternative living arrangements, for example, re-connect with family and friends, attend counselling, or simply focus on their health and wellbeing. Giving victims the time and space to do this will aid their recovery and it’s a process that employers can supplement with further discretionary support.

These amendments, combined with employer-led support, represent a win for working people across the UK, as well as a unique opportunity to enable women by levelling the playing field and pushing towards a more equitable workplace. What remains to be seen now is whether these proposals will be passed into law as part of the Employment Rights Act 2025.