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Workers with families are protected from discrimination and have protections and entitlements under employment law.
You have the right to a safe job, regardless of your employment status or length of service.
If you are fit for work but your current job isn’t safe because of your pregnancy, you are entitled to be transferred to a safe job.
Your employer must transfer you to a safe job if there is one available and you have given your employer evidence of your pregnancy-related illness, or the risk that makes your job unsafe while you are pregnant. Your employer must make this transfer for as long as you are at risk. This may be until you go on unpaid parental leave.
If there is no safe job available in your workplace, you may be eligible for paid ‘no safe job’ leave. To take paid no safe job leave,
If you take paid no safe job leave, your employer must pay you at your base rate of pay for your ordinary hours of work during the risk period.
If you feel unwell while you are pregnant and still working, you are able to access any personal leave. Under the National Employment Standards, full-time employees are entitled to 10 days of personal leave per year, and this is pro-rata for part-time employees.
When you go back to work after taking parental leave, you are entitled to come back to the job you had before going on leave. You are entitled to this job even if another person is working in your role as a replacement.
If your job no longer exists or it has changed, then your employer has to offer you an available job that you are qualified to work in and is nearest to your old job in pay and status. If your employer does not offer you a suitable job, this may mean a redundancy has taken place.
If your employment is terminated either before or when you return to work, or your employer does not offer you a suitable job, you may have a legal claim against your employer. Contact us for legal advice.
If you are pregnant or have the parental or caring responsibilities for a child who is of school age or younger, you may be eligible to make a request for flexible working arrangements
Full-time or part-time employees can make a request for flexible working arrangements if they have worked for at least 12 continuous months with their employer immediately before making the request.
If you are a casual employee, you are entitled to make a request if you have been working for the same employer on a regular basis for at least 12 months, and you have an expectation of continuing employment.
Your request for flexible working arrangements:
You can find a template request for flexible working arrangements on the Fair Work Ombudsman’s website.
Your employer must respond to your request within 21 days. They must respond in writing to approve or refuse your request, or set out an alternative arrangement. Your employer can only refuse a request on reasonable business grounds. They must be able to show that they discussed the request with you, genuinely tried to reach an agreement with you; and considered the consequences for you if they refused your request.
It is a breach of the law if your employer does not comply with their obligations in relation to a request for flexible working arrangements.
If you resolve a dispute about flexible working arrangements with your employer, you can lodge a if:
Your employer must transfer you to a safe job if there is one available and you have given your employer evidence of your pregnancy-related illness, or the risk that makes your job unsafe while you are pregnant. Your employer must make this transfer for as long as you are at risk. This may be until you go on unpaid parental leave.
It is unlawful to discriminate against a person because of their pregnancy, breastfeeding, carer or family responsibilities at work.
If your employer is discriminating against you, you may be able to make a discrimination complaint.
If you need an interpreter, call the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450 and ask them to call us.
If you are d/Deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech impairment, contact us through TTY on 133 677, Speak and Listen on 1300 555 727, or Internet Relay via the National Relay Service website.
Need support, not legal advice? Call Full Stop Australia on 1800 385 578, or 13YARN at 13 92 76 if you are First Nations.
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