Egg-freezing perks will not work in the UK, said employment lawyer
20 October 2014
Moves made by Silicone Valley giants Apple and Facebook to offer female employees the option of freezing their eggs would be potentially “a red rag to a bull” if it was adopted in the UK, warned an employment lawyer.
Mon, 20 Oct 2014 | By Nicola Sullivan
Moves made by Silicon Valley giants Apple and Facebook to offer female employees the option of freezing their eggs would be potentially “a red rag to a bull” if it was adopted in the UK, warned an employment lawyer.
According to a report in the Guardian, Facebook introduced the new perk as part of its surrogacy benefits, and from January Apple will pay bills of up to $20k (£12.4k) for egg-freezing procedures. It is also reported that this unusual way of attracting and retaining talent is in addition to Facebook’s $4k cash bonus to new parents and Apple’s 18-week paid maternity leave.
However, Will Burrows, head of employment law at Lewis Hymanson Small, said that he couldn’t see egg freezing perks being offered by employers in the City or in other sectors in the UK where there is a “fierce” war for talent.
He told Recruiter: “I don’t predict many executive recruiters or headhunters advising their clients to work it into a benefits package in the UK.”
Commenting on the employment law implications of such a perk, Burrows said: “If this kind of perk comes over to the UK it is potentially a red rag to a bull and opens up a series of employment law questions. There’s an implication that the employer wants to determine when and what age a woman should conceive a baby. It could discourage women having children at a younger age. It risks sending the message that natural pregnancy is incompatible with being a high performing employee.”
Burrows also said the fertility perk raised questions around discrimination. “The question of discrimination against men is also raised as well and whether employers should also offer to freeze sperm for example, particularly as this would not be a maternity-related benefit,” he said.
Moves made by Silicon Valley giants Apple and Facebook to offer female employees the option of freezing their eggs would be potentially “a red rag to a bull” if it was adopted in the UK, warned an employment lawyer.
According to a report in the Guardian, Facebook introduced the new perk as part of its surrogacy benefits, and from January Apple will pay bills of up to $20k (£12.4k) for egg-freezing procedures. It is also reported that this unusual way of attracting and retaining talent is in addition to Facebook’s $4k cash bonus to new parents and Apple’s 18-week paid maternity leave.
However, Will Burrows, head of employment law at Lewis Hymanson Small, said that he couldn’t see egg freezing perks being offered by employers in the City or in other sectors in the UK where there is a “fierce” war for talent.
He told Recruiter: “I don’t predict many executive recruiters or headhunters advising their clients to work it into a benefits package in the UK.”
Commenting on the employment law implications of such a perk, Burrows said: “If this kind of perk comes over to the UK it is potentially a red rag to a bull and opens up a series of employment law questions. There’s an implication that the employer wants to determine when and what age a woman should conceive a baby. It could discourage women having children at a younger age. It risks sending the message that natural pregnancy is incompatible with being a high performing employee.”
Burrows also said the fertility perk raised questions around discrimination. “The question of discrimination against men is also raised as well and whether employers should also offer to freeze sperm for example, particularly as this would not be a maternity-related benefit,” he said.
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