Student midwives claim maternity pay

Three student midwives are taking the government to an employment tribunal over the refusal to grant them paid maternity leave.

A student midwife's £6,000 bursary stops if she takes time off to have a baby.

The students argue that as they are required to spend a substantial part of their training doing clinical work in hospitals, they are "workers" and entitled therefore, under European law, to paid maternity leave.

The Royal College of Midwives, the Equal Opportunities Commission, and charities Working Parents and the Maternity Alliance are supporting the case.