Maternity Leave: FAQs

Does an employee have the right to return to the same job after her maternity leave ends?

The answer to this will depend on the length of the employee’s maternity leave. Where it lasts six months or less, she will have the right to return to exactly the same job, with the same terms and conditions. Alternatively, where an employee takes more than six months’ maternity leave and it is not reasonably practicable for her to return to the same job, she can be offered a similar job. In this scenario, the new role must be offered on terms no less favourable than the terms which applied to her previous role. This means that, for example, it would be unlawful to reduce her salary or remove a contractual benefit such as a company car.

What happens if a redundancy situation arises during an employee’s maternity leave?

During maternity leave, a pregnant employee enjoys special protection in a redundancy situation, meaning that their employer must offer them a suitable alternative vacancy, if there is one. Note that this protection does not prevent an individual from being selected for or made redundant.

The redundancy protection lasts for 18 months after the baby is born.

Is an employee entitled to take paid time off for antenatal care?

All pregnant employees have a statutory right to paid time off for antenatal care which has been recommended by a registered medical practitioner, registered midwife or registered health visitor.

With the exception of the first appointment, an employer can legitimately ask a pregnant employee to produce evidence of antenatal appointments, such as a certificate confirming pregnancy (e.g. a MAT B1 form) and an appointment card.

Is an employee entitled to take paid time off for neonatal care?

An employee whose baby requires specialist neonatal care following birth is entitled to neonatal care leave and statutory neonatal care pay. This is a day one right and employees are entitled to up to 12 weeks’ neonatal care leave.

Employees with 26 weeks’ continuous service at the relevant date are also entitled to neonatal care pay, paid at the same rate as statutory paternity pay. Neonatal care leave must be taken within 68 weeks of the child’s birth and may be added on to the end of another period of statutory leave, such as maternity leave.

Can an employee change her mind about the start date for maternity leave?

Yes. If an employee wants to change the start date of her maternity leave she must give her employer 28 days’ notice before the date she originally intended to start her leave, or 28 days’ notice before the new date, whichever is earlier. The employee can give a shorter period of notice if 28 days is not reasonably practicable for any reason.

Does an employer have to consider an employee for promotion if she is on maternity leave?

Yes. A failure to do so could potentially amount to maternity discrimination.