Cities of London & Westminster MP, Nickie Aiken, is delighted to have received support from the Prime Minister for the Fertility Workplace Pledge.
Undergoing fertility treatment is still taboo in the workplace. Employees are having to deal with multiple cycles, side effects, and complications in silence. Nickie has even heard of women injecting themselves in the toilets at work, afraid of the repercussions if their bosses find out.
To change the attitudes and support people undergoing fertility treatment, Nickie has worked alongside incredible organisations and charities including Fertility Matters At Work, Fertility Network UK, My Surrogacy Journey, LGBT Mummies, The IVF Network, Burgess Mee, Gateley, Infertility in the City, and representatives from the Manchester Metropolitan University, to launch the Fertility Workplace Pledge. It's a set of simple and voluntary commitments, designed to benefit millions of individuals and couples going through fertility treatment. Almost 50 companies have signed up to the Pledge, including Nationwide, Centrica, Unilever, Co-op, AutoTrader, Metro Bank, NatWest, Aldi, Cadent Gas, and the House of Commons.
Find out more about the Fertility Workplace Pledge, encourage your employer to sign up, and if you own or manage a business, sign up for the Pledge today here.
Highlighting the Fertility Workplace Pledge with the Prime Minister, Nickie explained,
"The UK birth rate is falling, while the numbers of those requiring fertility treatment to conceive are rising. There are no employment rights attached to those undertaking fertility treatment, and no paid time off work. Will the Prime Minister join me in encouraging employers, large and small and across the United Kingdom, to sign up to the fertility workplace pledge that I have launched with Fertility Matters at Work, LGBT Mummies, Fertility Network UK and many others, to support those undertaking fertility treatment when they are in work?"
The Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak MP, replied,
"May I start by thanking my hon. Friend for her excellent work campaigning on this issue? She is right: employers should offer their staff understanding, support, and flexibility while they are undergoing fertility treatment. The best way to improve the experience of those undergoing treatment, both women and their partners, is through voluntary approaches. That is why I join my hon. Friend in encouraging all companies to sign up to the fertility workplace pledge."
