Maternity Leave 

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Maternity

Summary

Every pregnant employee, regardless of her length of service, is entitled to take up to 26 weeks' ordinary maternity leave (OML) followed immediately by up to 26 weeks' additional maternity leave (AML). She may also qualify for 39 weeks' statutory maternity pay during OML and the first three months of AML.

Statutory maternity pay
A pregnant employee who has worked for her employer for a minimum period of 26 weeks up to and into the 15th week before her EWC, and who has average weekly earnings equal to, or greater than, the current lower earnings limit (LEL) for National Insurance Contributions (NICs) purposes, will normally qualify to be paid up to 39 weeks' statutory maternity pay (SMP) during her maternity pay period. There are two rates of SMP: the higher rate and the standard rate. The higher rate, payable for the first six weeks of the maternity pay period, is 90% of the employee's average weekly earnings. Effective from Sunday 4th April 2010, the standard or lower rate, payable for up to 33 weeks of an employee's remaining maternity pay period, is either £124.88 per week or 90% of her average weekly earnings, whichever is lower (earnings threshold for these benefits increases from £95.00 to £97.00)

Key Facts

• A pregnant employee is entitled to take up to 26 weeks' ordinary maternity leave and 26 weeks' additional maternity leave regardless of length of service. However, unless she gives birth prematurely, she may not begin ordinary maternity leave before the beginning of the 11th week before her EWC.
• The additional period of leave begins on the day immediately following the day on which her ordinary maternity leave period ends.
• To exercise her right to maternity leave, a woman must notify her employer by the end of the 15th week before her EWC (a) that she is pregnant, (b) of the date on which she intends to start her leave and (c) of her EWC. Her employer may also require her to produce a Certificate of Expected Confinement (Form Mat B1 or the equivalent) signed by her doctor or registered midwife.
• An employer that has been correctly notified of an employee's intentions in relation to maternity leave must respond in writing within the next 28 days, informing her of the date on which her maternity leave period will come to an end.
• An employee may change her mind about the date on which she intends to start her maternity leave, as long as she forewarns her employer of that change of mind at least 28 days before the revised start date.
• An employee with average weekly earnings equal to, or greater than, the current lower earnings limit (LEL) for National Insurance Contributions purposes will qualify for up to 39 weeks' statutory maternity pay during her maternity leave period.
• A woman returning to work after childbirth has the right to do so in the job she occupied immediately before her absence on maternity leave began. However, in some circumstances, she will have the right to return to a suitable alternative job on terms no less favourable to her than those she enjoyed in her original job.