Improved rights for new mothers

Employed women who are expecting a baby will benefit from improved rights to maternity pay and leave if the week their baby is expected falls on or after 1st April 2007.  Even if the baby is born prematurely, provided the birth is expected at this time, the new rights apply.  The new rights are:

  • an increased period of Statutory Maternity Pay or Maternity Allowance, paid for 39 weeks instead of 26.  Statutory Maternity Pay is paid to a woman by her employer at a level of 90% of her average weekly earnings for the first six weeks of her leave.  After that, she will receive a flat rate or 90% of her average weekly earnings (whichever is lower) for 33 weeks.  Maternity Allowance is paid by the Government at a flat rate or 90% of a woman’s average weekly earnings for all 39 weeks;
  • availability of 52 weeks’ maternity leave for all new mothers, where before a small minority of employees were only entitled to 26 weeks’ maternity leave.  The leave consists of 26 weeks' Ordinary Maternity Leave (OML) and 26 weeks’ Additional Maternity Leave (AML).  During OML, employees have the right to all their normal terms and conditions of employment except wages or salary.  During AML, some terms of the contract don’t necessarily apply;
  • the right for employers to make reasonable contact with employees on maternity leave;
  • where both the employee and the employer agree, the right for employees to go into work for up to 10 ‘Keeping in Touch Days’ during maternity leave without the employee losing any leave or pay entitlements.

There’s no change to the amount of notice employees have to give their employer about when they want to start maternity leave or when they’ll be coming back to work.  However, if an employee changes her mind about the date she intends to come back to work from leave, she must give her employer at least 8 weeks’ notice before the new date (or before the date she originally planned to return, if this is earlier).

Guidance

Details of the rights applying before and after 1st April 2007 are set out in two separate versions of Employment Rights Booklet ER 16.  Also useful in terms of the current rights is the Social Security Agency's booklet NIL17A external link, dealing with entitlements to SMP and MA.

Employees

Employers