Closed petition: Make redundancy illegal whilst on maternity leave/for 6 months after

Closed on 1 October 2025

We're asking the government to improve women's maternity rights within employment, making it illegal for an employer to make a woman redundant whilst on maternity leave, or within the first 6 months of returning to work, unless the company goes into administration in that time.

Motherhood is one of the hardest jobs. During the first 12 months, women can be at their most vulnerable, least confident and can question their identity. Increasingly, mothers are being made redundant whilst on maternity leave, which we think is unfair given their absence, but also shows no empathy for the emotional impact that decision has at that time. If a woman does not return to work, or leaves her job within 6 months, she owes her maternity pay in some cases - we think we should show some security in return.