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Or it would be if the indulgence didn't put your job at

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Or it would be, if the indulgence didn't put your job at risk. For every man who continues to address you as an equal after the announcement, there are 10 who meet the news with a pregnant pause, a bewildered "et tu, Brute" look, and a sigh of disappointment.Social demotion is what you actually get Theoretically that's not without its perks. In short they need to be able to make the necessary adjustments at work.But as well as this, they also needs to continue to receive respect as intellectual equals, despite their appearance, and that is what they don't get a lot of the time. They need time to go to their appointments (like men with back problems); they should be able to respond to solid medical advice such as to stay at home if her baby is at risk and work there (as would a man with back problems); they should be allowed to shift their work patterns and know that her employer retains full faith in their commitments to getting their jobs done well. This mentality is exactly what being pregnant is all about: you lose all of your adult privileges without gaining the advantages you truly need.There is no doubt that pregant women deserve understanding and special provision. The reason he would treat her more easily because of her condition is because he sees pregnancy as an illness that diminishes her responsibility.

She cannot be treated like other adults because she is presumed to be awash with hormones that have turned her back into a naughty little kitten, at the mercy of every passing caprice. But, if we are to have a fair and just society, it is absurd to portray pregnant women as victims in constant need of support - especially when they are involved in criminal behaviour.Pregnant women don't have it too easy. They are, however, treated like idiots, says Maureen Freely.If a judge decided to let a pregnant woman off the hook, he wouldn't be doing her any favours. Of course, I recognise the difficulties facing pregnant women - and give thanks that, as a man, I will never have to go through them. In one notorious case in Braintree, Essex, a local shopkeeper, who had not taken a holiday for 15 years, was driven to the brink of ruin by the compensation he was ordered to pay after not giving a job to a 22-year-old woman who was six months pregnant, despite the fact that the post involved heavy lifting.This is a graphic indicator of the sort of double standards that now apply: demands for equal rights on one hand and privileges on the other. The Ministry of Defence has had to pay out pounds 58 million in compensation to servicewomen who had to leave the forces because of their condition, including an award of pounds 455,000 to a Royal Navy Nurse.The same problems arise in the private sector. Some public employers now offer 53 weeks a year maternity leave - underwritten by the taxpayer - and woe betide anyone who ignores the new rights of pregnant women.

It is little wonder, with such attitudes prevalent in our state bureaucracy, that the welfare bill for lone parents now tops pounds 10bn.Special treatment is also reflected in the excellence of NHS maternity services compared to the sorry state of care for the elderly. So in the welfare state, pregnant mothers receive the highest priority whether it be in social security benefits or help from social workers or local authority housing.When I was a Labour councillor in Islington, I had one case in my ward where an engaged women was told that she was far more likely to receive accommodation if, instead of marrying, she became pregnant. And in reality, special treatment of pregnant women can be seen throughout our culture. In all walks of life we are urged not to practise any form of gender bias.

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