Campaigners are urging the government to double maternity pay amid fears mothers are making “drastic” choices because they cannot afford to live on the current statutory weekly amount.
The amount should be increased to £364.70, according to trade union Unison and charity Maternity Action.
Both organisations say they are concerned some women are going back to work early and skipping meals under the current amount.
Currently, Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) – the legal minimum employers can pay – is available for up to 39 weeks.
It is 90% of the mother’s average weekly earnings before tax for the first six weeks – and then the lower amount of either £172.48 or 90% of their average weekly earnings for the next 33 weeks.
However, ministers have been told that women should receive the equivalent of the national minimum wage of £10.42 an hour.
According to a survey by Maternity Action on behalf of Unison, a quarter of women on maternity leave say they have gone without eating, sometimes all day, so they can afford to feed their families.
The recent poll of 1,400 mothers in the UK on maternity leave found that half said they were buying less healthy food to save money, and more than a third were skipping meals or having smaller portions.
Unison boss Christina McAnea said that escalating living costs were impacting everyone’s lives, but were “hitting new mums particularly hard”.
She added: “No mother should have to go without food or skip meals, but the failure of maternity pay to keep up with increasing living costs is driving many pregnant workers and new mothers into severe financial hardship.
“The government is effectively forcing many women to choose between work and family.”
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She said the raise would ensure “no one is penalised for having a baby”.
Maternity Action director Ros Bragg said the initial stages of motherhood were a “very important time” as women could recover from the birth and bond with their baby.
“Women should be reducing their stress levels during pregnancy and their child’s first year, not worrying about how to pay for essentials,” the charity director said.
“Stress during pregnancy puts women at increased risk of post-natal depression and other mental health conditions.”
As well as SMP, some jobs offer contractual maternity pay as a benefit of working at the company, depending on the employer.