More than four-fifths of HR professionals believe that employers think twice before employing women of ‘childbearing age’.
The poll by Croner Consulting follows controversial comments by outspoken Godfrey Bloom of the UK Independence Party who said: “No small businessman with a brain in the right place would hire a lady of childbearing age”.
Croner’s Richard Smith warns: “It is unlawful sex discrimination to refuse to interview or employ a woman because she is, or is suspected to be, pregnant. This also applies to women of childbearing age, since this is not something related to her ability to do the job.
“Employers should steer clear of asking during an interview when a woman plans to start a family. This has nothing to do with her role as an employee and could be used as Tribunal evidence for sex discrimination.”
The UK workforce comprises nearly ten million women of childbearing age (16-49) with three and a half million aged 25-34, the most common age range for starting a family.
164 HR professionals responded to the poll.
One Response
HR bearing responsibility?
Your article appears to make a disconnect between the people who were polled (HR Professionals) and “businesses”. If four-fifth of “businesses” think twice before employing a woman of childbearing age, who is advising them? Is it THESE HR professionals who think twice on behalf of employers… or someone else?