Who are the Women Who Work in Their Last Month of Pregnancy? Social and Occupational Characteristics and Birth Outcomes of Women Working Until the Last Month of Pregnancy in France

Introduction The prenatal leave law in France protects women during pregnancy and their employment. We aimed to estimate the proportion of women who worked late in their pregnancy, to analyze the occupational, social and medical factors associated with late prenatal leave and to compare the pregnancy outcome of these women and those who left earlier in the pregnancy. Methods The sample was extracted from the 2010 French National Perinatal Survey. All women who delivered within a 1-week period were interviewed before discharge from the maternity unit. Women with a singleton live birth at or after 37 weeks’ gestation and who were working during pregnancy (n = 8463) were included. Data were collected on employment, date of leave, and sociodemographic and medical characteristics. Results Overall, 328 women (3.9 %) took a late prenatal leave (at or after 37 weeks’ gestation). Women who left late were older than 30 years old, with a high educational level and were living in an urban area. Being self-employed and having a managerial or upper-intellectual occupation was highly associated with late leave, before and after controlling for relevant variables. Perinatal and delivery outcomes were similar for women who took a late leave and those who left before 37 weeks’ gestation. Discussion Occupational characteristics are the main determinants of late prenatal leave. Women working in the last month of pregnancy had a favorable social and occupational situation and did not did not experience an adverse pregnancy or birth outcome. Other studies are needed to understand the reasons for late leave and evaluate the post-partum fatigue and health of these women.