New mums are being driven back to work too soon after giving birth because they can’t afford to take their full statutory maternity leave. a shop workers' union has said.

The report from shopworker's union, Usdaw said women were returning to the workplace on average six weeks before their statutory maternity pay ran out.

The survey found that two-thirds of those going back early to work returned because they just couldn’t afford to stay off and the union found the average cost of taking a full 12 months off was a staggering £7000.

"That’s a huge sum of money for our members to lose and is what most families actually spend paying their household bills every year so this is the kind of financial blow that many low paid workers will take years to recover from," says John Hannett, Usdaw General Secretary.

The report states as many as 78% of new mothers said they would have liked more time looking after their babies.

And new dads face the same desperate economic dilemma with every father surveyed wanting more paid paternity leave but saying they simply couldn’t afford to take extra unpaid leave to spend with their new born child.

The government pays Statutory Maternity Pay at 90% of average earnings for the first six weeks of leave followed by 20 weeks at £102.80 per week and some new mums may also be entitled to 26 weeks more leave. However, Usdaw said some retail companies did not top up SMP, which made it very hard for new mothers to stay at home.

"The fact is that most women will need to take maternity leave at some point in their lives so we are focusing on how we make pregnancy and maternity leave a positive experience for every woman not just those who can afford it, " said John Hannet, Usdaw general secretary.