Chance of being pregnant - do I go ahead with it? How do benefits work

liney

.http://www.advicenow.org.uk/go/feature/feature_361.html?pkgid=35
Extracted from link.
What if they ask if I'm pregnant at a job interview?
You don't have to tell them if you're pregnant. The fact that you are pregnant, or are planning to have children should have nothing to do with whether you get the job. If they ask you questions about pregnancy or children during an interview it could be sex discrimination (see Discrimination in the menu on the right).

There's much more information in the link.

Spendless

vaio wrote: »

Not ones I’ve ever seen on a medical either but also not really an answer to my questions which were…..

Are pre-employment medical questionnaires or examinations unlawful?
Can they be lied to without consequences?
What about in-service occupational heath assessments?

And, if they can be lied to, how does that tie in with the H&S legal requirement for employees to comply with the company H&S policy?

Is it only pregnancy you can lie about? What about epilepsy? Colour-blindness? Chronic bad back? A degree you don’t have?

AFAIK there are not unlawful. BUT I have never seen a questionaire that asks are you pregnant? With the exception of one, and that was on a form for claiming JSA (contribution based). I answered yes and STILL got my JSA, therefore it must follow that you can job-seek whilst pregnant.

vaio

vaio wrote: »

Not ones I’ve ever seen on a medical either but also not really an answer to my questions which were…..

Are pre-employment medical questionnaires or examinations unlawful?
Can they be lied to without consequences?
What about in-service occupational heath assessments?

And, if they can be lied to, how does that tie in with the H&S legal requirement for employees to comply with the company H&S policy?

Is it only pregnancy you can lie about? What about epilepsy? Colour-blindness? Chronic bad back? A degree you don’t have?

Spendless wrote: »

AFAIK there are not unlawful. BUT I have never seen a questionnaire that asks are you pregnant? With the exception of one, and that was on a form for claiming JSA (contribution based). I answered yes and STILL got my JSA, therefore it must follow that you can job-seek whilst pregnant.

Cheers Spendlass, so questionnaires are not unlawful, what about the rest of the questions?

Pre employment medical exams?
Can they be lied to without consequences?
What about in-service occupational heath assessments?

And, if they can be lied to, how does that tie in with the H&S legal requirement for employees to comply with the company H&S policy?

Is it only pregnancy you can lie about? What about epilepsy? Colour-blindness? Chronic bad back? A degree you don’t have?

liney

Viao, you are missing a very important point here.

A degree does have bearing on applying for a job. (qualification required to a particular job)
Colour blindness does have bearing on applying for a job. (wiring for example)
Pregnancy has no bearing when apply for a job.

If you ask the question you are going to use the information, and therefore be open to accusations of discrimination, and lets face it this would be the reason you asked in the first place.

You would only discover an applicant was pregnant at a medical after they had been offered a position, of the job was subject to the medical. If you then retracted the offer after discovering the pregnancy this would be direct sexual discrimination and i would be very interested to hear how you would defend yourself in an employment tribunal: " Well Gov, she should have told me she was pregnant in the interview then i never would have offered her the job in the first place... " Oh really?

doodlehumlucysmum

Hi all,

Thanks to every one for their kind and in some cases realistic comments. I think that I may have offended some people as it looked like i wanted to live of benefits - that really wasn't the case; I'm in a temping job at the mo and the contract was for two months back in august and i am still there so wasn't sure how maternity pay etc worksfor temps. I think i wasn't in the greatest emotional state at the time of writing. Some one said something about benefits being ONLY a stop gap and I couldn't agree more.(sorry if thats causes offence i understand how peoplehae different circumstances)

I did take the morning after pill (again sorry if this upsets anyone) on the bases of if I was allready pregnant that we would have to make cutbacks etc and breast feed for the next 21 years, and if i wasn't then when I am in a perm job we are going to be able to savemore and i can pay off more of my debts and be able to provide better.

So thats the situation i have now. I ways gutted as I am not pregnant but now i can be a little level headed and ask myself why i am being so broody when if i wait a few years i will be able to provide in a much better way. I think that its because I've never had much of a familiy which is what i really crave. I think that maybe i am being a bit selfish in wanting a child.

Lucy the dog is helping in a weird and bizzare way-she went to the vets today and has to spend the day in the vets tomorrow for all sorts of tests - they think that she may have sarcoptic mange caught by the fox she confronted in the garden. I'm worried sick about her and have prepared a doogy day bag with a special lunch for when she comes round from her tests. All this worry for a dog - I'd be a wreck with a child!

This post looks really imformative thanks its really helped me think things through and i am sure it has probably helped lots of people.

Once again. I really am very sorry if i have caused anyone offence.

Sarah

doodlehumlucysmum

Sorry my spelling is awfull in that post!

daphne_descends

doodle :grouphug: you poor thing, I hope your little baby is okay.

you made the right choice for you and that's all that matters.

pebbles88

fac73 wrote: »

doodle :grouphug: you poor thing, I hope your little baby is okay.

you made the right choice for you and that's all that matters.

i agree, only YOU know what is right for YOU. and at the end of the day everyone will have something to say about whatever YOU do. (i know from experience), so as long as whatever you decide works for you, then nothing else really matters. It all works out in the end.

hope your pup gets better, xxxxx

TAG

Hi doodlehumlucysmum

It's an awful do I don't I dilemma with the MAP. I took it a couple of years ago but it didn't work. So I found myself expecting No5. Sadly though at 10 weeks we lost the baby.

I think some of the comments you received were a bit heavy handed and it certainly brought to the fore a heated discussion on employing/or not a pregnant woman.

I hope Lucy is soon on the mend, let us know.

Take care

Tag x

vaio

doodlehumlucysmum wrote: »

Hi all,

Thanks to every one for their kind and in some cases realistic comments. I think that I may have offended some people as it looked like i wanted to live of benefits - that really wasn't the case; I'm in a temping job at the mo and the contract was for two months back in august and i am still there so wasn't sure how maternity pay etc worksfor temps. I think i wasn't in the greatest emotional state at the time of writing. Some one said something about benefits being ONLY a stop gap and I couldn't agree more.(sorry if thats causes offence i understand how peoplehae different circumstances)

I did take the morning after pill (again sorry if this upsets anyone) on the bases of if I was allready pregnant that we would have to make cutbacks etc and breast feed for the next 21 years, and if i wasn't then when I am in a perm job we are going to be able to savemore and i can pay off more of my debts and be able to provide better.

So thats the situation i have now. I ways gutted as I am not pregnant but now i can be a little level headed and ask myself why i am being so broody when if i wait a few years i will be able to provide in a much better way. I think that its because I've never had much of a familiy which is what i really crave. I think that maybe i am being a bit selfish in wanting a child.

Lucy the dog is helping in a weird and bizzare way-she went to the vets today and has to spend the day in the vets tomorrow for all sorts of tests - they think that she may have sarcoptic mange caught by the fox she confronted in the garden. I'm worried sick about her and have prepared a doogy day bag with a special lunch for when she comes round from her tests. All this worry for a dog - I'd be a wreck with a child!

This post looks really imformative thanks its really helped me think things through and i am sure it has probably helped lots of people.

Once again. I really am very sorry if i have caused anyone offence.

Sarah

Hope everything works out as you want in all respects

Re the maternity benefits I would have thought that given the time you have been in the same job you will qualify for the full range if you decide to have a child and you should certainly get advice if anything bad happens in work whilst you are pregnant.

Cheers for starting what developed into an interesting (if somewhat off topic on occasions) thread, it certainly prompted some interesting opinions and discussions.