Maternity Leave All the information held in this section can be downloaded in pdf form Parenting_and_Archaeology.pdf
Isn’t it up to 12 months now? Technically, but have you read the small print?
Ordinary Maternity Leave (6 months)
Women are entitled to 2 weeks compulsory maternity leave following childbirth. For the first 6 weeks of maternity leave your employer must pay 90% of your wages (providing you have been with your employer for 26 weeks).
6 weeks maternity pay is all your employer is obliged to pay
After this, you are entitled to statutory maternity pay (SMP) of £123.06 per week* for a further 33 weeks.
Equivalent to £5,904 p.a. – £8,822 below the poverty line**
Many employers recognise that new mums cannot survive on this and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) advises employers to add to the SMP figure in order to retain their female employees.
This typically manifests itself as an entitlement to SMP + 50% of your wage, after 6 weeks and up to 6 months.
But this is entirely at your employer's discretion.
Even if your employer only cuts your wage to 50%, for those women who are a household's main wage earner, even beginning to wean your baby (and allowing your body time the time it needs to recover) can result in very substantial financial losses - just at the time when financial worries should be the very last thing on your mind!
Taking 6 months maternity leave could lose you several months rent/mortgage repayments:
Take Home Pay
£15,000
£20,000
£25,000
Loss to Income
£597
£1,616
£2,635
Additional Maternity Leave (up to 12 months)
If you take more than 6 months maternity leave, you still receive SMP at £492/month (for a further 6 months) but lose the entitlement [sic] to any part of your wage, leaving you – and your new baby – living well below the poverty line.
N.B. After 6 months, your employer is entitled to change your job description upon your return.
So, if you fall pregnant – perhaps especially as a single woman, or if you are the main wage earner in your relationship – then watch out, your 'entitlement' to 12 months maternity leave in the UK is not all it seems.
The BWA recommend that – whatever your situation – you find out what your employer offers now, do the maths, and if you’re shocked at what you find then get advice, start lobbying, or talk to your union.
**130 days paid maternity leave isn’t much in a career of 44 years**
More information
There’s a really useful Maternity Factsheet here from the LawWorks team:
