New Delhi, February 17, 2023: The Rugby Football Union (RFU) announced a new maternity leave policy on Thursday, entitling contracted England women’s players to 26 weeks of fully paid leave and funds for children under a year old to travel with them to games.
The policy, which the RFU described as “ground breaking”, also offers pregnant players the opportunity to move into other employment within rugby until they go on maternity leave.
“I am confident that the policy will help normalise motherhood in sport and give players the best possible chance of returning to play… in a secure and safe way,” said England lock Abbie Ward, who announced her pregnancy last month.
The issue of maternity leave for professional athletes has gradually come into sharper focus in recent years.
Tennis star Serena Williams was denied a seeding at the 2018 French Open when she returned to competition after the birth of her daughter, leading to widespread criticism of the tournament organisers.
By the end of the year, the Women’s Tennis Association had changed its rules on maternity leave to offer players returning from pregnancy not just a protected ranking, but also a protected seeding.
