Maternity protection

The Maternity Protection Act applies not only to women in an employment relationship, but also to

• Pupils, students, interns, women with disabilities in a workshop for the disabled, development workers, women in youth and federal voluntary service and women who are to be regarded as similar to employees because of their economic non-independence.
• It also applies to fixed-term employment relationships, employment relationships in the probationary period, training relationships and employment relationships exempt from social insurance (mini-job).
  For pupils and students, the employer is replaced by the school or training provider.

The Maternity Protection Act also aims to protect women from losing their jobs during pregnancy and for up to four months after giving birth

Rights of employees:

• Prohibition of employment/leave of absence for the last 6 weeks before childbirth and normally ends  8 weeks after birth, in the case of medical premature birth or multiple births, and in the case of disability of the child, 12 weeks after childbirth.
• General employment prohibitions for certain activities (e.g. piecework assembly line work, Sunday or night work or also individual prohibitions that must be medically prescribed)
• Financial benefits such as maternity pay, employer's supplement to maternity pay or pay during employment bans
• Leave entitlement
• Special protection against dismissal
• Creation of special working conditions for expectant and breastfeeding mothers

More information and advice can be found here.

Phone: 030 201 791 30 from Monday to Thursday from 9:00 to 18:00

Email: info@bmfsfjservice.bund.de