Council to help in pregnancy losses

Female council employees are to be given greater support after pregnancy loss and during the menopause.

Aberdeen City Council has pledged to do more to improve the wellbeing of the women who make up most of its workforce.

The authority employs around 8,000 staff, of whom 6,000 are female.

Issues around women’s reproductive health are frequently considered difficult to talk about and are often misunderstood by those not suffering from the same issues.

Charity Wellbeing of Women has found many feel forced to reduce their hours at work, pass up promotions and even quit their jobs due to lack of menopause support.

In order to address this the charity is asking employers to sign the Menopause Workplace Pledge – which the council has done.

It has also been signed by the Scottish Government, the House of Commons and the Civil Service.

The SNP’s Gill Al-Samarai said: “Awareness around menopause has been raised considerably over the last couple of years.

“But for some women it’s still a debilitating illness and it’s important that we recognise that. We are adaptive to that and we are supporting staff.”

The staff governance committee also agreed to sign the Pregnancy Loss Pledge run by the UK charity Miscarriage Association.

With around one in four pregnancies ending in miscarriage it is likely every workplace will employ someone who will experience it.

By signing this pledge the council has committed to “show empathy and understanding” towards workers and their partners who may be dealing with pregnancy loss.

They have also agreed to allow staff sufficient time off and to support them upon their return to work.

Labour’s Kate Blake said: “This is an incredibly important issue.

“As someone who has suffered a miscarriage themselves I’m really pleased that the council is recognising this.”

For some women menopause is still a debilitating illness

IMPORTANT: Kate Blake has suffered a pregnancy loss.