Ten Crucial Points About Your Rights On Maternity Leave

Posted by green baby on March 11, 2010

Once upon a time it was possible for women in a relationship to be concerned only with the full-time job requirements of running a home and raising children. Society and sometimes pure economics today play into this mix and dictate that most pregnant mums have to work. While most of the attention, quite rightly so, is on the pending arrival, you also need to be aware of your rights.

1. You are entitled to 52 weeks of maternity leave at a maximum. This entitlement is paid to you, regardless of whether you work on a full or a part-time basis, or how long you’ve worked for a particular employer.

2. Your maternity leave is divided into two categories and the amount of money that you receive from your employer is calculated accordingly.

3. The standard maternity leave ordinarily lasts for 26 weeks. You will be entitled to receive all your contractual rights during this period of time and to retain any perks such as a company car and your paid holiday earning ability. Apart from the payment that you receive, you will be treated exactly as if you were still working.

4. After the first 26, the following 13 weeks are known as “additional maternity leave,” but your contractual rights only apply in certain areas. Your notice period remains the same, your availability of redundancy pay is unchanged and your typical disciplinary and grievance procedures still apply.

5. Your statutory rights remain in place throughout the whole of your maternity leave, which could include an additional 13 weeks of unpaid leave. You may not be discriminated against and must not be passed over in favour of another employee in the event of redundancy.

6. If you have 26 weeks of continuous service at the end of the 15th week before baby is due, you will qualify for what is known as Statutory Maternity Pay, or SMP. Statutory maternity pay is determined based upon a period of calculation - eight weeks up to and including the 15th week before baby is due. You must have earned at least £87 per week before tax during this period. If you do not qualify for SMP, you may be entitled to Maternity Allowance.

7. While you may work right up until your baby is born - and it’s entirely up to you to decide, fundamentally, as you’re able to begin your maternity leave as soon as 11 weeks before baby is expected. Both the period of your leave and your payment will commence on the day that you actually begin your maternity leave time.

8. You are not legally obliged to tell your employer that you are pregnant until 15 weeks before the baby is expected.

9. You will be entitled to free dental treatments, prescriptions and National Health Service coverage as a pregnant mother in the UK.

10. Bear in mind that it could be very much in your best interests to let your employer know that you are pregnant as early as possible, as you may then be entitled to reasonable amounts of time, with pay, for visits to the doctor. In addition, you may not be expected to perform certain tasks including lifting or the handling of certain substances, to protect the unborn child.

There are so many things to think about when preparing to live life as an expectant mother, and you should certainly consider professional coaching to help you prepare. Everyone knows that coaching for women is widely accepted and beneficial these days and online life coaching is available for every phase of your ever-changing lifestyle!

It’s important to note that this article is only intended as a general guide for women who are getting ready for maternity leave in the UK. It’s important to keep in mind that maternity legislation can - and does, change quite frequently. This article is written in good faith with information available to the author at the time of writing. We do not intend that this article should replace the current information that you may reveal through your own research process.

Amanda Alexander, Director of Coaching Mums, helps pressure-cooked, stressed working mums who long for more hours in the day. Through her coaching programmes and online life coaching courses, Amanda shows mums how to create fulfilling and successful lives. For your simple 5 step guide to balance as a working mum, download our free eBook today!

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