This page deals with adverse pregnancy events, such as stillbirths, neonatal deaths, miscarriages and ectopic pregnancy. If you need support, please contact The Sands National Helpline, the Miscarriage Association or The Ectopic Pregnancy Trust.
Every year, miscarriages, stillbirths, ectopic pregnancies and neonatal deaths impact and disrupt the lives of tens of thousands of families in England. Until now, the long-term financial consequences for the women who experience these have not been understood. To target support where it counts, policy makers may want to consider the economic cost of baby loss.
At the Office for National Statistics (ONS), we’ve used linked administrative data to show the effect baby loss and related experiences have on earnings and employment gaps.
Our study shows that women who experienced a stillbirth, the death of a newborn, a miscarriage or ectopic pregnancy saw their earnings drop. In some cases, this meant an average loss of more than £13,000 in earnings over five years.
Evidence of the economic impact on women was lacking
The emotional and physical impact of events like miscarriages and stillbirths is huge.
However, very little evidence previously existed which showed any effect of baby loss on a woman's earnings or employment, with no credible, large-scale evidence in the UK at all.
Policy makers could use this evidence to consider support for women experiencing baby loss, including:
- bereavement pay
- compassionate leave
- flexible working rights
- targeted clinical pathways
Employers also had little data to inform workplace policies, meaning that women affected by this could leave their jobs permanently. This study provides some information to help employers understand how baby loss may impact their workforce.
Linking data about baby loss and women’s earnings
We created a dataset containing de-identified information about 147,000 women who’d experienced baby loss, between 1 April 2014 and 31 December 2022. This was based on:
- hospital records relating to miscarriages, ectopic and molar pregnancies
- ONS birth registrations for stillbirths
- ONS death registrations for neonatal deaths
- monthly employee earnings from HM Revenue and Customs and an indicator of paid employment
- socio demographic information from the 2011 census
We de-identified all personal information so that no one could be identified from the statistics we published.
We looked at the average change in monthly earnings and the effect that baby loss had on women’s pay. We then compared these with their position one year before the event.
The hidden economic cost of baby loss
Experiencing baby loss not only causes deep personal grief but can also set women back financially for years. Our study shows that women who experienced a stillbirth or the death of a newborn lost more than £13,000 in earnings in the first five years. While most eventually returned to work, the financial impact lingered well beyond the immediate period of statutory leave. It typically took two years for employment rates to recover. However, earnings did not recover in the same period.
Women experiencing miscarriages and ectopic pregnancies also earned less over the same five-year period, around £3,500 to £4,000. They were also less likely to be working in the year that followed.
This study exposes a hidden economic cost on top of an already traumatic experience. Recognising the scale and duration of this is crucial for designing targeted policies and support that can genuinely help women rebuild their working lives.
How can our baby loss study help to improve women’s working lives?
This work shows how linking de-identified data can help to answer complicated questions about sensitive issues that have a profound effect on people’s lives.
Policy makers could use our study to review the duration and rate of statutory payments, especially for stillbirth and neonatal death.
Employers could use the data to justify flexible working arrangements, phased returns and counselling services that help staff rebuild careers.
Health commissioners could use the findings to align bereavement, perinatal mental health and occupational health services.
Measures like these could help to shorten the recovery time for women’s earnings, protect productivity in the workplace and benefit women’s wellbeing.
To find out more, read The impact of adverse pregnancy events on monthly employee earnings and employment, England: April 2014 to December 2022.
This project was funded by the UK Government's Labour Markets Evaluation and Pilots Fund - 2024 to 2025.