Susan Halliday, the Sex Discrimination Commissioner for the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, kindly forwarded the Pregnancy Guidelines statement written in response to the Attorney-General of Australia's request for an enquiry into matters relating to pregnancy and work.

This document clearly sets out the responsibilities of both employers; prospective employers and their agents; and employees. The information contained below is reproduced, sometimes verbatim, from the "Pregnancy discrimination at work" documents received from the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. "Pregnancy is a normal, healthy physical condition that many women experience". "The Sex Discrimination Act 1984 makes pregnancy and potential pregnancy discrimination in employment unlawful."

Employers are advised that industrial relations laws, occupational health and safety laws, and industrial awards need to also be considered in relation to pregnancy issues in employment. The Sex Discrimination Act covers all employers and employees, except for a few State based awards. It also includes commission agents and contract workers. Employers can also be liable for actions of their staff and agents, such as recruitment agents, unless "reasonable steps have been taken to prevent the discrimination". Discrimination is "when a woman is treated less favourably because she is pregnant or has the potential to become pregnant". Four major areas exist where the greatest pitfalls occur.

Recruitment
Employers should seek the best applicant on merit for the position regardless of pregnancy or potential pregnancy. (This equally applies to sex, age and marital status.) Applicants must be treated the same during the recruitment process, and assumptions must not intrude into the selection process. Questions asked must be job specific, and cannot be asked about existing or planned children. Suitable questions to ask are those regarding travel, work hours, and the qualifications to complete the tasks required.

Employment
"Employers should not reduce an employee's terms and conditions or deny other benefits on the basis of pregnancy or potential pregnancy". After consultation with the employee, all reasonable adjustments to the workplace should me made in order to provide a solution to any normal effects of pregnancy. With legitimate OH&S issues reasonable adjustments should be made to allow the employee to continue to work. If these adjustments cannot satisfactorily solve the issue, then a temporary transfer of the employee may in be needed. It is not unlawful to request a medical certificate outlining safer duties and hours in each individual pregnancy. The altered employment may in no way alter benefits obtained, although if hours decrease, salary may decrease. It is not possible to transfer an employee to a position of lower status, even if the pay remains the same. Some solutions may include providing a pregnancy uniform or not requiring uniforms, providing adequate seating, and toilet breaks. "Constant references to an employee's pregnancy, touching her stomach and badgering her about whether she is "really" planning to come back to work are likely to amount to discrimination."

Leave
Employee entitlements and notice requirements should be checked. As women take varying amounts of maternity leave, it must not be assumed that 12 months maternity leave will automatically be taken. Some employees may wish to access paid annual leave or long service leave. Pregnant employees can use sick leave to attend regular prenatal medical appointments. However pregnancy is not an illness, and sick leave is not generally applicable for the birth of the child. "Generally, employees are entitled to return to their former position". Even those employees not entitled to maternity leave, such as some casual staff and those with less that a year service, have rights, and discriminative dismissal is likely to be unlawful under the Sex Discrimination Act.

Dismissal and retrenchment
"An employer cannot dismiss or retrench an employee because she is pregnant or has the potential to become pregnant, even if this is only one of the reasons for her dismissal." The usual grounds for dismissal or retrenchment: financial or operational reasons; poor or inadequate work performance; or serious and wilful misconduct, remain valid. If an employee is on maternity leave, she must be consulted regarding changes in the work environment. The booklet advises all employers to develop a set of workplace guidelines to avoid discrimination in pregnancy. This would include the employers commitment to a non-discriminatory workplace, any OH&S considerations for pregnant women, rights and obligations applying under the relevant award or agreement, rights to unpaid maternity leave, and complaint or grievance

Procedures.
Employees also have responsibilities under the Sex Discrimination Act. The Federal Workplace Relations Act 1996 requires, amongst other things, that an employee give: notice of intention to take maternity leave ten weeks prior to the estimated date of birth; and, a medical certificate stating the expected date of birth and maternity leave four weeks prior to the first day of maternity leave.

Contact addresses provided at the back of the booklet include websites for the following organisations.

The Victorian Women Dentists' Association is a newly formed organisation aimed at supporting, encouraging and empowering women dentists.

The Official Launch of the VWDA was held at the Hilton on the Park, East Melbourne, on Tuesday 18 July, 2000.

We were privileged to have Rhonda Galbally A.O. Managing Director of the Australian International Health Institute, speaking on this occasion.