We can advise you on your maternity and paternity rights, parental leave and flexible working rights and, if things do go wrong, what steps you can take to resolve the position.
All female employees have the legal right to 52 weeks' maternity leave and 39 weeks' maternity pay. Individual employers may offer more generous schemes, but are not obliged to do so. A woman on maternity leave is not entitled to receive her usual pay, but is entitled to Statutory Maternity Pay or Maternity Allowance. The woman must be paid all non-cash benefits during her maternity leave - such as a company car.
Maternity leave cannot start before the beginning of the 11th week prior to the expected week of childbrith, unless the woman is absent from work because of a pregnancy-related illness.
One of the most important aspects of the legislation in this area is that it gives the woman the right to return to her old job (or a similar one) after her materinity leave has finished and on the same terms and ocnditions as when she left.
Female employees with at least one year's employment with their employer can take up to 13 weeks unpaid parental leave and that can be added on the end of the maternity leave period if so desired.
Paternity leave is also available to those employees who have a child born to their partner (or they adopt). The father can take up to two weeks' partnity leave up to 8 weeks after the date of birth or date of adoption. The father will be entitled to statutory paternity leave during this period.
We have extensive experience of advising in relation to maternity and paternity rights, if you need advice in relation to these rights, please call us on 01474 834664.
