Maternity Leave and Pay

The whole area of Maternity Leave and Pay is a maze of statutory and contractual regulations. If you have any questions or difficulties in this area then our advice is to contact the General Secretary at the address below.

New regulations came into force on 1 April 2007. Members who are pregnant should ensure that they benefit from the new arrangements rather than the old arrangements.

What are the general arrangements?

Any employee whose Expected Week of Childbirth (EWC) falls on or after 1 April 2007 is now entitled to 52 weeks Maternity Leave (ML).

There is no qualifying period in terms of length of service therefore all employees are entitled to this.

The 52 weeks comprises of 26 weeks Ordinary Maternity Leave and 26 weeks Additional Maternity Leave.

Maternity Leave may now start on any day of the week.

When can my maternity leave start?

Maternity Leave can start no earlier than the 11th week prior to the expected week of childbirth. The pregnant teacher herself decides on the actual date.

Must I take Maternity Leave if I am pregnant?

An employee must take at least 2 weeks compulsory maternity leave. In the absence of any other arrangement, it would start on the day on which the childbirth takes place.

When must I inform my employer that I intend to take maternity leave?

An employee must inform their employer no later than 21 days prior to the start of the maternity leave.

What must I tell my employer?

An employee must inform their employer in writing of:

1. The fact that she is pregnant
2. The expected week of childbirth
3. The date on which maternity leave is to start.

Do I need to proof that I am pregnant?

Yes. An employee must submit form MAT B1 (maternity certificate) to their employer. This can be
obtained from you GP or midwife when you are about 26 weeks pregnant.

Do I need to tell my employer the date of birth?

Yes. The employee should notify her employer, as soon as reasonably practicable, of the date of the birth of the child.

Maternity Pay

What arrangements are there for paid maternity leave?

An employee who has at least 26 weeks continuous service at the beginning of the 11th week before the Expected Week of Childbirth will be entitled to occupational maternity pay.

An employee who has less than 26 weeks continuous service at the beginning of the 11th week before the Expected Week of Childbirth will not be entitled to occupational maternity pay. (However she may be entitled to Maternity Allowance payable through the Department of Work and Pensions.)

How much will I get paid?

1. For the first 13 weeks an employee will receive her normal salary. (Strictly this is made up of a combination of Statutory Maternity Pay and Occupational Maternity Pay.)

2. For the next 26 weeks the employee will receive Statutory Maternity Pay only.

3. For the remaining 13 weeks of maternity leave the employee will receive no pay.

Return from Maternity Leave

If I wish to return to work before the end of my Maternity Leave how much notice do I need to give my employer?

An employee must give her employer a minimum of 28 days notice in writing if she wishes to return to work before the end of her maternity leave. An employer may postpone her return to work for up to 28 days if the appropriate notice has not been given but not to a date later than 52 weeks from the start of the maternity leave period.

Do I need to give notice if I intend to return to work at the end of the 52 week maternity leave period?

No.

Antenatal Care

Am I allowed time off with pay to attend antenatal care?

Yes. An employee is allowed to take such reasonable time off to attend antenatal care though an employer may require the employee to produce evidence of such appointments.

Stillbirth

What happens if I have a stillbirth?

In the event of a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy an employee is entitled to maternity leave and pay as if there had been a live birth.

Sickness Leave and Maternity Leave

What happens if I am ill before my maternity leave starts?

Where an employee is absent from work due to illness before the start of the maternity leave period such absence will generally be treated as normal sickness absence.

However if the illness is due to a pregnancy related condition and occurs less than 4 weeks before the expected date of childbirth then the employee will be deemed to have started maternity leave at the start of the relevant period of illness.

What happens if I am unable to return to work due to illness at the end of my maternity leave?

Such absence will be treated as normal sickness leave.

Accrual of Leave during Maternity Leave

What happens about my accrued holiday leave during maternity leave?

An employee who is entitled to be paid Maternity Leave shall be entitled to receive pay in lieu of the leave accrued for the period up to the day before the commencement of that maternity Leave. The right to payment in full for holiday pay ceases at the end of the 13 weeks full maternity pay.

Where an employee gives written notice to her employer that she does not wish to return at the end of her maternity leave she shall receive a payment in lieu of leave accrued during the paid maternity leave period (first 13 weeks).

Pension

What happens to my pension contribution during Maternity Leave?

The employer will continue to make full pension contributions during a period of paid Maternity Leave.

Accrual

An employee who intends to return to work after maternity leave may also benefit from special leave if the paid ML period includes school holidays. If this period includes at least 4 weeks of the summer holiday or the whole of another, holiday period of at least one week’s duration, the teacher is granted 2 days of special leave for each week of holiday contained in the paid ML period. To benefit from this provision the teacher must have informed her employer of her intention to return to work at the end of the ML period. For the purposes of this provision one week is 7 consecutive days. The maximum special leave allowance is 10 days in any leave year.

Right to Return to Work

Do I have the right to return to my old job?

If you are a permanent employee you have the right to return to the post in which you were employed prior to your maternity leave under conditions of service which are not less favourable.

If however, you are a temporary employee you do not have the right to return to work where your contract would have expired during the period of your maternity leave,

Keeping in Touch Days

What are keeping in touch days?

During maternity leave an employee is allowed up to 10 days at work (in agreement with your employer) with normal pay without bringing the maternity leave to an end. See separate leaflet. Detail as set out in Section 7 Family Leave – Clause 7.42.