Illness during pregnancy and parental leave

As a pregnant woman, you may have special needs during pregnancy to spare yourself and your future child.

Your employer must help you so that you get the necessary protection against the physical and psychological stress that may be in your working environment.

Pregnancy examination and absence from work

Are you going to examinations in connection with your pregnancy, e.g. ultrasound examinations, midwife consultation, or the like? Then you are entitled to do so during work hours without any cut to your salary, but only if it is not possible to schedule the examination outside of working hours.

Illness during pregnancy

As a pregnant woman, you can either have a general illness or a pregnancy-related illness.

In the case of a general illness, the same rules apply as if you were not pregnant.

If you suffer from a condition that is linked to your pregnancy and poses a risk to the health of the foetus or you, it is a pregnancy-related illness. Pregnancy-related illness can, for example, include the risk of miscarriage, premature birth, pelvic dislocation or preeclampsia.

Whether you are entitled to sick pay or salary during the illness depends on your collective agreement, employment contract or staff handbook. As a salaried employee, you are always entitled to pay during illness - including pregnancy-related illness.

If you are paid during illness, your employer can get a refund of sick pay. This means that you must meet the conditions to receive maternity benefits.

See the rules for sickness benefit at borger.dk 

Pregnancy and the 120-day rule

In your employment, are you covered by the 120-day rule, which means that you can be dismissed if you have been sick for 120 days in a year? Illness due to pregnancy does not count when calculating 120 days of absence.

Read more about the 120 day rule

Dangerous work and pregnancy

Your employer has a duty to ensure that you can perform your work in a fully responsible manner in terms of safety and health.

If you have a job that poses a risk to your pregnancy or the safety and health of your foetus, this risk must be removed. This can happen by your employer reassigning you to another job or making other measures on your job.

If it is not possible to make the workplace safe or to relocate you, you are entitled to be sent home with full pay up until 4 weeks after the birth. You will then switch to maternity leave.

Things that can affect your pregnancy and your working environment as a pregnant woman include:

• lifting and other physical loads
• prolonged sitting, standing or walking work
• night work
• that you are exposed to noise, radiation, ultrasound, cold or heat, chemical influences
• that you are exposed to infectious diseases
• risk of violence or threats.

Illness during parental leave

If you fall ill while you are on parental leave, your leave will not be interrupted as a rule.

If you as a mother become so ill that you are unable to take care of your child, the right to daily benefits during leave within the first 10 weeks after the birth can be transferred to the father/co-mother. It is the doctor who assesses whether this is the case.

It is a condition that the mother has legal residence in Denmark and meets the conditions for the right to maternity benefits.

If the father/co-mother takes over the full parental leave, he/she loses the right to take the two weeks' leave in connection with the birth.

The father/co-mother must fulfill the conditions for the right to maternity/paternity benefits.

If you fall ill while you are in the period after the first 10 weeks after the birth, you can only postpone the leave and switch to pay during sickness in agreement with the employer.

Baby's illness during childbirth

If your baby falls ill within the first 46 weeks after the birth/reception of an adopted child, special rules apply.

Read about children's illness in connection with maternity/paternity