Maternity leave: 50,000 women a year don’t get jobs back

Up to 50,000 women who take maternity leave each year are unable to return to the jobs they left behind because of discrimination by employers according to figures analysed by the House of Commons library. The research found that as many as 14 per cent of the 340,000 women who take maternity leave every year find their positions under threat when they try to return. Some are told that they cannot do their old job part-time and are forced into roles with less responsibility while others are effectively constructively dismissed. Those who do return to the same job sometimes find it harder to get promotion, leading to a growing pay gap between men and women in later life.
Maternity Gap - The Independent 27 August 2013

UK 23rd best place to become a mother

The UK has failed to make the top 20 in a list of the best places to be a mother - falling behind its neighbours Ireland and other European countries such as Germany and France. In a list of 176 countries in the Mother’s Index, contained in Save the Children’s State of the World’s Mothers report, the UK is ranked at number 23. Finland, Sweden and Norway take the top three slots respectively while for the first time, countries in sub-Saharan Africa - where 10% to 20% of mothers are underweight due to poor nutrition or under-age pregnancy - take up each of the bottom ten places in the annual index.
The detailed and thorough report also looks at what can be done to save newborn lives in industrialised countries. Increased access to family planning and better sexual health education for youth are among the recommendations, as unplanned and teenage pregnancies are high risk factors for newborn mortality. Also wider use of kangaroo care and better breastfeeding support including Baby Friendly hospitals.
State of the World's Mothers 2013 - Save the Children