A pregnant woman has the right to three different types of payment from Forsäkringskassan:
1. Sjukpenning (sickness benefits)
A woman has the right to benefits if she is sick during her pregnancy in a way which hampers her capacity to work by at least 25%, irrespective of whether or not the illness is a result of being pregnant.
2. Havandeskapspenning (pregnancy benefits)
Available to women who work in a risk-filled environment, for example where there are chemicals that are damaging to the foetus. It may also be granted if the woman has a physically demanding job.
3. Föräldrapenning (parental leave)
Forsäkringskassan may recommend a woman uses her maternity days prior to the birth, leaving fewer available for after the birth.
Clearly there is grey area between these three benefits and when they apply, and a lot is left to the interpretation of the administrative staff involved.
However, if a doctor tells a pregnant woman to abstain from working due to pregnancy-related conditions such as back pain, inguinal hernias, fatigue, sleeping problems, and pelvic arthropathy, because her capacity to perform her job is diminished, she they should fall within category 1.
Yet that has not been the case in every instance.
A court recently ruled (Nov 09) that Försäkringskassan is guilty of gender discrimination and awarded four women 50 000kr each in damages. All four women were advised by their doctors to go on sickness benefits for the duration of their pregnancies but their applications to Försäkringskassan for sickness benefits were denied.
According to Linda Månsson, one of the four women, Försäkringskassan found that the underlying reason for her complications was the pregnancy, and that being pregnant was not an illness thus she was not entitled to sickness benefits. It was this reasoning that struck Linda as absurd considering – if someone has a heart attack no one asks if it is an unhealthy lifestyle that has lead to the heart attack.
Försäkringskassan's reasoning was the basis of the discrimination ruling.
