The Open University is leading a research project that aims to positively change women’s experiences at work after an early pregnancy ending.
Jo Brewis, Professor of People and Organisations, is encouraging women, transgender men and other gender diverse people who have experienced an early end to a pregnancy during paid employment to take part in a national survey.
Survey aims to improve organisational support for women
The survey is the first of its kind. Its aim is to understand how affected women navigate the demands of work while experiencing termination or miscarriage (including, for example, ectopic and molar pregnancies) in pregnancy, up to 24 weeks.
Pregnancy charity Tommy’s estimates that one in five pregnancies ends in miscarriage – or one in eight if you only count women who realise/report a miscarriage. Other estimates suggest that one in three women will have a termination during their reproductive lives.
Additionally, the survey aims to improve organisational support for women who experience termination and/or miscarriage.
Organisations in the UK are being encouraged by the Miscarriage Association’s Pregnancy Loss Pledge to take action in this area but this doesn’t cover termination as a form of pregnancy ending.
The project team hope the research will give evidence-based guidance for line managers and HR professionals as well as resources for employees themselves. Visit here to take part in the survey, which ends on 31 May.
Jo said:
“This project is really important because it focuses on the lived experience of navigating a variety of early pregnancy endings whilst in paid employment.
“This is a very under-studied area: we have only been able to locate one previous publication on terminations in this context, and only eight which discuss miscarriage.
“We want to be able to ground our recommendations to HR professionals, line managers, trades union representatives, third sector organisations like our project partners Abortion Rights and the British Pregnancy Advisory and employees in the data we gather.
“We also want to expand academic knowledge about these experiences. Our project is significant because it is gender inclusive: we very much welcome people who do not identify as cis women but have had one of these experiences to take part in the survey.”
The survey seeks to answer the following questions:
- What are the lived experiences of pregnancy endings in the workplace before 24 weeks gestation?
- To what extent and how do women disclose these pregnancy endings at work?
- What are the factors that discourage women from disclosing at work?
- How do employers respond to pregnancy endings?
- What are women’s experiences of workplace support after pregnancy endings?
The research is being conducted along with Jo’s OU colleagues Professor Julie Davies, Dr Aimee Middlemiss and Dr Victoria Newton, plus Dr Pam Lowe and Dr Killian Mullan, from Aston University, and Professor Ilaria Boncori, from the University of Essex, in partnership with the British Pregnancy Advisory Service and Abortion Rights.
Visit Early pregnancy endings and the workplace | The Open University Business School for further details about the project.
Jo Brewis is well known for her research on menopause in the workplace. She is the co-author of the 2017 government report The effects of menopause transition on women’s economic participation in the UK. As an independent panel member for Menopause Friendly Accreditation amongst other activities, she works to further the menopause in the workplace agenda.
