Zwanzig Jahre Mutterschutz in der Schweiz: Quid?

Abstract

Twenty years of maternity protection in Switzerland: Quid? Aim: In 2001, the Maternity Protection Ordinance (MSV) came into force in Switzerland. The aim of our study was to better understand how the MSV is applied in two economic sectors, i.e. health care and food industry, in French-speaking Switzerland and how those affected deal with it. Method: A mixed method design was applied: quantitative surveys among 200 companies and 93 gynaecologists (GG) and case studies in six organisations with a total of 46 semi-structured interviews. Results: The GG estimate that they receive a risk analysis (RA) for only 5 % of pregnant women with an occupational hazard and 35 % of GG never/rarely request an RA. Sick leave is preferred to protective leave. Almost half (48 %) of the companies involved stated that they have in-house procedures that correspond to the Swiss MSV. Nevertheless, only 25 % (n = 51) stated that an RA was carried out in their company, and only 15 of these were prepared by a qualified specialist. We extrapolated from stratified random sampling that 6 % of companies in the health care sector and 1 % in the food industry are legally compliant with the MSV. Affected women develop various strategies to reconcile pregnancy and work and they rely heavily on their colleagues and on the GG. Conclusions: Maternity protection at work is only marginally implemented in Switzerland. The question arises as to how the implementation can be improved and whether certain insurance law content of the MSV should be revised. Keywords: maternity protection – risk analysis – workplace adjustments – sick leave – protective leave