In Ramos v Servicio Galego de Saúde, Ramos (R) requested that her working conditions be adjusted as she was breastfeeding her child and her duties as a nurse in the A&E unit were liable to have an adverse effect on her milk. The employer refused, as the role of a nurse in A&E had been included in a list of risk-free jobs drawn up by the Hospital after consultation with workers’ representatives and a doctor had declared R as being fit for her role. The ECJ held that a ‘generic’ risk assessment of a job is insufficient to comply with the EU Directive to protect the H&S of pregnant workers, those who are breastfeeding or who have recently given birth; there must be a specific risk assessment taking into account the worker’s individual circumstances. If a worker believes this has not happened, she must provide evidence which suggests that is the case and from which it can be presumed that there was direct sex discrimination. It is then for the employer to prove it has complied with the Directive.

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