As the number of females in the workforce has grown over the last thirty years, women have demonstrated that they are competent at every level of employment. Women have proven that it is possible to be both successful employees and mothers. For this reason, federal law protects the notion that the decision to start a family is personal and that neither male nor female employees should fear reprisal for absences resulting from family leave.³⁹

Employers bear the indirect cost of pregnancy in terms of absenteeism and presenteeism. Preventing unintended pregnancies would reduce these costs.

Worker Absence

• Doctor appointments prior to delivery (experts recommend a minimum of 10)
   
• Leave prior to delivery
   
• Leave after delivery/delayed return to work

Type of leave used by women who return to their pre-birth employer:⁴⁰

• Paid 60%
   
• Unpaid 48%
   
• Let go from job 1%
   
• Disability 11%

According to a 1996 report to Congress on Family and Medical Leave policies⁴¹:

• One-fifth of all leave is taken by parents caring for newborn, adopted or fostered children, and by women as maternity-disability leave.
   
• Maternity-disability leave represents 4 to 7% of all leave taken. Of this leave, 40 to 45% lasts longer than 12 weeks.

Unscheduled absences are costly for employers. Half of worker absenteeism is the result of family issues, personal needs, or stress.⁴² Unintended pregnancies cause stress for women and their families and may interfere with an employee’s ability to do their job.

Women May Leave their Jobs

• The year their first child is born, 27% of women quit their jobs.⁴³
   
• Companies can spend thousands of dollars to replace employees who quit.
  The cost of replacing an employee who takes maternity leave or quits work to care for a child averages $4,372. This figure does not include the cost of training a replacement worker and varies substantially depending on the industry. For example, the cost of hiring a food service worker is estimated at $1,971 while the cost of replacing an employee in the pharmaceutical or biotech industry averages $13,508.⁴⁴

Returning to Work

• Many women make an effort to combine work and pregnancy.
  More than half of pregnant women work within one month of the child’s birth.⁴⁵ Of women who work during their pregnancy, 57% were back to work by the third month after delivery and 70% were back to work by the 6th month.⁴⁶
   
• After maternity leave expires, working mothers have to balance their careers with the needs of a new child.
  A study of first-time parents in dual income households showed that six months post-delivery the childcare responsibilities of working mothers increased by 23 hours per week while the time new mothers actually spent at work decreased by 10.7 hours per week.⁴⁷

Presenteeism
Presenteeism occurs when an employee is on the job but not fully functioning. This generally occurs when an employee is ill or has a medical condition, and accounts for productivity losses on-the-job.

• Employers are beginning to focus more attention on presenteeism and its costs.
  One recent study estimating the costs of absenteeism and presenteeism found the greatest economic burden from the following conditions: hypertension, heart disease, depression and other mental illnesses, and arthritis. Researchers also found that presenteeism costs were, in most cases, higher than medical costs.⁴⁸

Reasons for Presenteeism During and After Pregnancy

• Stress of an unintended pregnancy.
   
• Stress upon return from work postpartum.
  A study of new mothers at five weeks postpartum showed that the women who returned to work exhibited a greater amount of mental stress that women who chose to stay home with their newborns.⁴⁹ Anxiety and depression negatively affect concentration and overall productivity at work.
   
• Productivity losses and absenteeism may also result from depression.
  Postpartum depression effects 10 to 15% of women and 30 to 75% suffer postpartum blues.⁵⁰ Among the general population depression is considered the leading cause of worker disability. Individuals suffering from depression have 4.1 hours less constructive time at work during the week than the average employee costing U.S. employers an estimated $31 billion dollars a year in lost productivity time.⁵¹
   
• Physical discomforts that make work difficult may also lead to reduced productivity.