All female employees, irrespective of length of service, are entitled to 52 weeks’ statutory maternity leave. This comprises 26 weeks’ ordinary maternity leave, immediately followed by 26 weeks’ additional maternity leave. Each female employee is entitled to reasonable time off, with pay, during pregnancy for ante-natal care. This is subject to the production of evidence of appointments from a registered medical practitioner or midwife.
Ordinary Maternity leave
Notification procedure for ordinary maternity leave
Ordinary Maternity Leave cannot begin more than 11 weeks before the expected week of childbirth. The employee must notify their line manager by the end of the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth (or as soon as reasonably practicable) of their intention to take maternity leave, the date of their expected week of childbirth and the date they intend the leave to start. The employee can change the date they intend the leave to start, as long as they advise their line manager at least 28 days in advance. The employee must also provide a certificate from a doctor or midwife (Mat B1 Form) to HR, which states the expected week of childbirth.
Ordinary Maternity Leave may also begin automatically if:
(a) the employee is absent due to their pregnancy (e.g. pregnancy related sickness) on or after the beginning of the 4th week before their expected week of childbirth and they notify the employer as soon as reasonably practicable that they are absent due to the pregnancy, or,
(b) childbirth occurs before either of the above provisions, but the employee must then notify the employer as soon as reasonably practicable that they have given birth.
Returning from ordinary maternity leave
Notification of return is required if the employee wishes to return to work earlier than the end of the Ordinary Maternity Leave period. In this case, the employee must give not less than 8 weeks’ notice to the employer of the date they wish to return. An employee on Ordinary Maternity Leave has the right to return to the same job, unless the position has been made redundant, in which case the employee will be offered any alternative role which is available, which provides work that is both suitable and appropriate for them to do in the circumstances and is on terms not substantially less favourable.
Remuneration and benefits accrual for ordinary maternity leave
Payment is made in the form of statutory maternity pay for the Ordinary Maternity Leave period, provided that the employee qualifies for Statutory Maternity Pay as follows:
- the employee must be employed by their present employer in the 15th week before the week in which the baby is due.
- the employee must have been continuously employed for at least 26 weeks into the 15th week before the baby is due (41 weeks in total).
Employees entitled to Statutory Maternity Pay will receive this for 39 weeks; this is made up of 26 weeks during Ordinary Maternity Leave and 13 weeks Additional Maternity Leave.
The standard rate of Statutory Maternity Pay is regularly reviewed by the government, please contact HR for up-to-date rates. Employees with at least 26 weeks’ continuous service at the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth will receive earnings related to Maternity Pay at 90% of their contractual based salary for the first 6 weeks, thereafter they will receive standard rate Statutory Maternity Pay for the immediately following 33 weeks.
Holiday entitlement is accrued, as normal, for the period of Ordinary Maternity Leave. The contract of employment continues during Ordinary Maternity Leave and Additional Maternity Leave and entitlement to all benefits continue, with the exception of salary (and other remuneration payments). What constitutes a benefit for this purpose may vary according to the employee’s personal contract of employment and it is important therefore that it is confirmed prior to the commencement of the leave.
Additional Maternity Leave
Notification procedure for additional maternity leave
Legally there is no requirement to give specific notice of the intention to take advantage of Additional Maternity Leave. However, this will assist the employer greatly in planning how the role will be covered in the employee’s extended absence.
Returning from additional maternity leave
Employees taking Additional Maternity Leave must not give notice of the intention to return. However, if they wish to return to work earlier than the agreed date, they must give not less than 8 weeks’ notice to HR of the date they wish to return.
An employee on Additional Maternity Leave has the right to return to the same job unless the position was made redundant or unless it is not reasonably practicable for the employer to permit them to return to the same job. In this case the employee has the right to return to an available alternative role, which provides work that is both suitable and appropriate for them and their circumstances and is on terms not substantially less favourable.
The employer may not postpone an employee’s return to work after Additional Maternity Leave and the employee may not have a right to postpone their return on medical grounds. If the employee is ill at the end of Additional Maternity Leave, the employer's normal rules on sickness absence will apply.
Time off for antenatal care
During pregnancy, employees are entitled to take reasonable time off to receive antenatal care on the advice of a registered medical practitioner, midwife, or health visitor, and be paid at their normal hourly rate of pay for the period of their absence. The employee must be prepared to provide the employer upon request with a certificate from a registered medical practitioner, midwife or health visitor confirming that they are pregnant and produce an appointment card or some other document after their first appointment, if requested.
The employee must advise their manager in advance of each appointment and attempt to arrange them at the start or the end of the working day if possible or at times of minimum impact and disruption to the employer’s business.
Health and safety
The employer has a duty to take care of the health and safety of all of its employees. Risk assessments will be carried out in order to assess the workplace risks to female employees who are pregnant, have recently given birth or are breastfeeding. The employer must provide the employee with information as to any risks identified in the risk assessment.
If the risk assessment reveals that the employee would be exposed to health hazards in carrying out their normal job, the employer may take such steps as are reasonably necessary to avoid those risks, such as altering their working conditions. In some cases, this may mean offering the employee suitable alternative work (if available) on terms and conditions that are not substantially less favourable.
If the employee believes there is a risk to their health or safety or to that of their baby which has not been considered in the risk assessment, they must bring the risk to the attention of the employer
Sickness absence during pregnancy
If the employee is absent from work during pregnancy owing to sickness, they will receive normal statutory or contractual sick pay in the same manner as they would during any other sickness absence provided that they have not yet begun ordinary maternity leave.
If, however, the employee is absent from work due to a pregnancy-related illness after the beginning of the 4th week before the employee’s expected week of childbirth, their maternity leave will start automatically. If the employee is absent from work wholly or partly because of pregnancy during the 4 weeks before the expected week of childbirth, the employee must notify the employer in writing of this as soon as reasonably practicable.
Maternity Leave UK