Fertility Matters at Work

Hello. 👋 We are Becky, Natalie and Claire. In early 2020, we all met in a pub in the Peak district after many Zoom calls (armed with a pile of post it notes and a 🌈 mix of sharpie markers). As good business strategies go, this wasn’t half bad, and that brain dumping afternoon gave us the basis of what we needed to achieve in the fertility space where the workplace was concerned. It did happen to collide with a global pandemic but we still worked furiously in the background to make our post it notes into reality. Fast forward 4 years and we are now working with some awesome GLOBAL clients on this conversation and have just won our first award! Us!!!!!!!!!! Fertility Matters at Work does exactly what is says on the tin. We educate and inspire businesses with an awareness of how fertility issues affect their employees and their organisation. We help everyone and anyone- even if your business is teeny tiny or it's spread across the globe. Fertility issues affect 1 in 6 people so it's kind of a done deal that there will be people in your place of work who experience this. We can help your business by bringing a hidden conversation into the open and, trust us, once this happens, it will GROW! We give you a 100% guarantee that from the moment this conversation is introduced you will see the ripple effect it has on your people and they will feel heard. Not only is this a conversation for the #wellbeing space, it is an emerging #DiversityandInclusion topic, it relates to has #Attraction #Engagement and #Retention and has a link to every single employee network group in your business. What's not to like? More importantly, WHY would you NOT want to chat to us

Congratulations to Addleshaw Goddard who have recently been accredited as a 'Fertility Friendly Employer'. In partnering with Fertility Matters at Work, Addleshaw Goddard have created an inclusive and supportive workplace for colleagues facing fertility challenges, ensuring that staff are supported during their fertility journey as well as helping to foster a culture of understanding & care throughout organisation. Mary Peterson , Head of Responsible Business at Addleshaw Goddard, said: "We are proud to lead the way as the first major law firm to achieve the Fertility Matters at Work 'Fertility Friendly' accreditation. We want to foster a workplace culture where colleagues who are facing fertility issues know that they have a support network around them and there are provisions in place to allow them to receive treatment and take the necessary time off to recover." It's been a pleasure working with Mary and Lina Zographou who have led on this important work and created such a supportive environment for their workplace.

This picture was taken during our co-founder Becky's own fertility journey (during IVF cycle 3 or 4) just before egg collection, all whilst trying to juggle a career and treatment with long-held hopes and dreams. Nine years on, this is still the silent reality for so many. It's World IVF day and we want workplaces to know that IVF isn't an 'elective' procedure, and it's so much more than just a few injections and scans. 💉 It's a medical treatment that as many as 1 in 6 people impacted by infertility worldwide (WHO) may need, and it’s due to circumstance that means people undergo IVF, it's not just a simple 'lifestyle choice' as it's sometimes portrayed. 🙏 It’s a medical treatment that gives a chance of a baby, sadly not a guarantee. 💔 It impacts people physically, emotionally and financially. 🕰 It can be a long journey for many with many hurdles to overcome. 🗣 It's a people issue that can affect anyone, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, relationship status or ethnicity. 🖥 It can be an all consuming process that is impossible to leave at the door when coming into work, whatever your job. Workplaces have a role to play in supporting those going through IVF (and other fertility treatments) with policy, guidance, awareness raising, training, peer support, emotional support and signposting. At Fertility Matters at Work we bring to life what it means to go through fertility treatment in the context of the workplace, whilst supporting organisations to put into place accessible guidance and policy, education for managers and support for peer networks. Ultimately we drive cultural and lasting change around the topic of fertility within the workplace. Get in touch to find out more about how we can support your organisation - https://lnkd.in/e5mD5APa

Congratulations to Iris who are the first Marketing agency to become fertility friendly accredited™ . Driven by lived experience the agency used its creative spark within its visual comms which was brilliant to see, as well as combining both in person and virtual awareness raising events to inform their policy development, manager training and awareness raising activity. We're looking forward the next stage in supporting Iris North America to also in becoming fertility friendly.

We've been shocked to see actual workplace policies that put fertility treatment alongside 'elective' procedures that are cosmetic surgery-related, such as Invisalign. The word 'elective' is problematic for someone whose only chance to have a child is through fertility treatment, meaning that they are needing this due to circumstance, not simply 'choice'. Seeing the comparison with something that is deemed to be elective can have a huge impact on individuals as it suggests that their experience may not be recognised or fully understood by their organisation. At Fertility Matters at Work we want all organisations to put in place policies that recognise this life-event and put supportive guidance and measures in place. We're not alone in this view... in February this year, in partnership with the Workplace Fertility Campaign Group, we shared a survey which had almost 2000 responses in just three weeks, including from those who had been through fertility treatment, from those who knew someone who had been through fertility treatment and also those who had no experience of fertility treatment. What was shown was a consistent response across all three groups - 95% agreed that taking time off work to attend fertility treatment appointments shouldn't be compared to cosmetic surgery related appointments and should be treated more favourably. If you'd like support in reviewing your policies, raising awareness and internal education about this often hidden, yet vast, issue, please get in touch - https://lnkd.in/e5mD5APa

How do you overcome the challenge of raising awareness and sharing support for fertility challenges across a large male-dominated workforce, spread across the UK? In our webinar (available to watch on demand) we chat with Cadent Gas Limited who have done such amazing work to not only open up this taboo conversation, but to help it live and breathe continually across the organisation. Huge kudos to Liz Brand and Kelly-Anne Morris for driving this forward, they have been a pleasure to work with and continue to do great things as part of their partnership with us at Fertility Matters at Work. If you'd like to watch the webinar in full, where we also speak with Selfridges and Diageo, follow the link - https://lnkd.in/ead_3gVK

Do you want to hear from organisations leading the way about what it actually means to become a fertility friendly employer? In this engaging and informative webinar, you'll hear from Selfridges, Diageo and Cadent Gas Limited as they share the brilliant employee engagement activities they have done to raise awareness of fertility matters at work. You'll hear about how they utilised their Fertility Matters at Work membership to : 🗣 Drive internal conversations regarding stakeholder buy-in 👥 How they grew their peer support network ✅️ How they engaged managers in the training and 📖 How they developed policy and guidance to ensure that this conversation was integrated within their wellbeing strategies. It's a conversation you need to hear if you truly care about how best to support the 1 in 6 impacted by infertility. Follow the 🔗 to watch and please share with any colleagues who may find this useful: https://lnkd.in/ead_3gVK

How do you build a business case internally for fertility support? Hear from Kelly-Anne Morris and Liz Brand, from our Fertility Friendly Accredited member organisation, Cadent Gas Limited, about how they secured business buy-in. Cadent have built amazing support and become accredited through an employee-led approach, supported by HR. You can find out more about how three of our members have become Fertility Friendly through our recorded webinar, which is available to watch back here: https://lnkd.in/ead_3gVK

We have the most incredible people around us - huge thanks to our brilliant training consultant Tracey Jones who yesterday delivered an awareness session for WISE focusing on Women’s Health in the Workplace for STEM leaders.

We were so pleased to get to share our 'Fertility Matters at Work and here's why' flagship session with VF Corporation after having conversations on how best to engage global employees in this topic. Huge thanks to Aly J for sharing your story and driving this topic up the agenda, along with Meng Tao and Hortense Carlier. We look forward to hearing what you decide to do next!