On 31st October 2017 parents took to the streets in 6 cities across the UK to demand recognition, respect and change for working parents. Organised by the campaign group Pregnant then Screwed, the protestors made 6 demands:
- Increase the time limit to submit a tribunal claim for maternity and parental leave discrimination from three months to six months (at the very least);
- Ensure companies report on how many flexible working requests are made and how many are granted within an organisation ;
- Allow both parents access to six weeks parental leave paid at 90% of their salary;
- Allow self-employed workers access to statutory shared parental pay;
- Provide subsidies for childcare from six months old, rather than the current three years.
The demands aim at remedying the widely acknowledged difficulties experienced by women during pregnancy and returning to work. The difficulties in finding affordable childcare or making working arrangements to fit in with family life.
It being Halloween, the protestors dressed as mummies (corpses not mothers) and marched in Belfast, Cardiff, Manchester, Glasgow and London.
The picture for pregnant women and working parents still looks bleak with many facing unfair treatment and discrimination.
Tom Street qualified as a solicitor in 2003 and has over 20 years experience in employment and litigation law. He studied law at the University of Manchester before undertaking the legal practice course at the College of Law in Guildford, going on to complete his legal training at a firm in Chancery Lane, London. Once fully qualified, he moved to a niche litigation practice in the City of London.
In 2010, Tom set up his own legal practice, Tom Street & Co Solicitors and as part of this, in accordance with his strongly held objective to provide everyone with an easy pathway to justice he established the online portals Do I Have A Case? and Tribunal Claim. These websites are trading names of Tom Street & Co Solicitors.