Pregnancy top query for equality watchdog

WORKING parents and expectant mothers concerned about leave entitlements continue to make up the biggest number of contacts with the Equality Authority, the watchdog’s annual report shows.

A total of 41% of queries to the authority related to maternity protections (30%), parental leave (10%) and adoptive leave (1%), although the figure is down from 54% last year — a drop attributed mainly to rising unemployment and employees’ inability to avail of some forms of leave because they are unpaid.

However, the proportion of queries under the Employment Equality Acts which deal with discrimination while at work increased significantly, from 21% to 34%, and the biggest number of those came under the gender heading which typically deals with women feeling unfairly treated compared to male colleagues.