Rights for pregnant women

The right to continue receiving company employee benefits

If you are pregnant or you have taken your pregnancy or parental leave of absence, you have the right to continue to take part in the benefit plans that your employer continues to offer. Employee benefits can include: 

If the employee paid her share of the premiums prior to pregnancy then she must continue to pay her share of the premiums in order to continue to receive the benefits in the plan. Likewise, the employer must continue to pay its share of the premiums for any of the plans that were offered before the pregnancy leave, unless the employee tells the employer in writing that she will not continue to pay her own share of the premiums. Employees who are on pregnancy or parental leave can also continue to participate in other benefit plans if employees who are on other types of leave are able to continue to participate in those plans.

In addition, a pregnant employee may be entitled to disability benefits during that period of the leave when she would otherwise have been absent from work for health reasons related to her pregnancy or childbirth.

The right not to be penalized by your employer

It is illegal for an employer to penalize a pregnant employee in any way because the employee:

Pregnant women who are penalized by their employers should contact  gbennett@bennettlaw.ca  immediately to schedule a consultation.

Employers who are uncertain about how to handle a disciplinary issue or lay-off which involves a pregnant employee should also contact Gary Bennett for a legal opinion on how to act properly without breaking the law.

The right to get your job back

In most cases, an employee who takes a pregnancy or parental leave is entitled to:

In both situations, the employer must pay the employee at least as much as he or she was earning before the leave. Also, if the pay for the job increased while the employee was on leave, or would have increased if he or she hadn't been on leave, the employer must pay the higher pay when the employee returns from the leave.

If an employer has dismissed an employee for legitimate reasons that are totally unrelated to the fact that the employee took a pregnancy or parental leave, the employer does not have to reinstate the employee. These situations are often hard to prove and we strongly recommend employers contact Gary Bennett for a legal opinion prior to taking action against the employee.

The Right to Earn Credits for Length of Employment, Length of Service and Seniority

Employees continue to earn credits toward their length of employment, years of service, and seniority while they are absent from work during a pregnancy or parental leave. However, even if the employee’s length of service continues to increase, it does not necessarily mean that the employee will be gaining vacation days or vacation pay while on pregnancy or parental leave. Some unionized workplaces provide for this benefit but it must be determined on a case by case basis.

The period of the pregnancy or parental leave is not included when determining whether an employee has completed a probationary period. If an employee was on probation at the start of the pregnancy or parental leave, he or she must complete the probationary period after returning to work at the end of the leave.

For more information on how to protect your interests, contact Gary Bennett at  gbennett@bennettlaw.ca  to book a consultation.