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Original poster

Our wonderful nanny is pregnant.....but what to offer her? As much an employment issue as a nanny issue

39 replies

foxinsocks · 23/05/2009 08:28

Our wonderful nanny has announced she is pregnant. Naturally, we are delighted for her as I think it's something she's wanted and she'll be a fab parent!

I've told her I would love her to come back afterwards. A baby does not put me off at all and my children would be delighted but I think, quite sensibly, she feels having looked after other people's children for years, she'd quite like to have some time looking after her own child without having to look after others too!

Now that leaves me in a bit of a dilemma. I assume she might not resign and then we would have to pay maternity pay and then she could resign when this had ended?

But if she has no intention of coming back, can she still go on maternity leave?

Thing is, we all know that we can't tell how we are going to feel when we have a baby and I have a sneaking suspicion that she may come back over time.

But obviously, I am going to need to employ someone to do her job and am now wondering at what point to do this because if she does take maternity leave, for those first 6 weeks, I will be paying 90% of her salary plus 100% of a new nanny's salary which will be extremely hard financially (will have to come out of savings).

Of course, I am prepared to pay her, I'm not trying to dodge that, but am wondering whether I should sit down with her and say that if she is sure she isn't going to come back that she should resign and I will give her a lumpsum. But I am worried she will think I'm trying to do her out of maternity pay iyswim.

Any thoughts?

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Original poster
foxinsocks · 23/05/2009 19:56

ah thanks popilol. That's really really helpful and it seems like we will mirror your process exactly.

I'd absolutely love our nanny to come back, baby and all, but tbh, I think she hasn't made up her mind yet (and seems to be erring towards the not coming back) so I think I might need to get quite a long term temp cover but I will have a more serious conversation with her in a few weeks time. She too, like your nanny, wants to keep us in the loop as much as possible.

Just out of interest, when you say you have recovered all your SMP, is this in advance of you paying it out (as it sounds like she hasn't gone on maternity leave yet) or is this after you've paid it out?

OP posts:
Popilol · 23/05/2009 18:49

Hi

I have been through a v. similar situation to you - our wonderful nanny has just had a baby. I was worried about how it would all work out but touch wood seems to be OK.

Financially, her maternity pay is covered (SMP is fully recoverable + 4.5% to cover 'ers NI that you will be paying on top). I have recovered all of my nanny's SMP in one lump sum - a matter of gathering various bits of information (NI number, dates of maternity leave, pay etc.) and completing on-line form via HMRC website. My cheque was with me within 2 weeks. The HMRC website provided all of the info and guidance I needed including maternity pay calculator etc.

It's the practical side which is more of a challenge. Our nanny is only taking 3 months maternity leave (completely her choice) which we are covering through using holiday and friends/family to cover (the nanny works 3 days a week so not full-time to cover). If it had been longer I would have used a temp nanny and put her on a contract which matched the length of the maternity leave.

I had a full and frank conversation with our nanny when she was about 20 weeks about her intentions in terms of going on maternity leave, length of leave and intentions to return. She understands our point of view in needing to have reliable childcare sorted out and did all she could to help with that process. Our nanny will be bringing the baby with her when she comes back to work. She's a great nanny and I am sure she will be as committed when she returns with the baby.

Good luck and hope it works out for you.

Original poster
foxinsocks · 23/05/2009 15:45

thanks guys. I see from one of those leaflets, I can actually pay SMP in a lumpsum if I want to. I also need to find out how I get it back from HMRC!

Yes a temp nanny might be the best option. Am hoping it won't cost me too much more tbh.

8 weeks notice is reasonable actually isn't it because a good 2 months will give me a chance to sort out what's going to happen.

OP posts:
nannynick · 23/05/2009 13:52

The Guide for Employees may also be worth look, as it will help you know what time periods your nanny has to give in relation to changing the date they want Maternity Leave to start and end. For the end date, they MUST give 8 weeks notice, so your temp nanny would get sufficient notice that their contract was to end.

nannynick · 23/05/2009 13:19

A temp nanny could be on a monthly renewing contract. You would need to hire the temp nanny with their understanding that the contract is not permanent and is covering for maternity leave.

A booklet which may help - Pregnancy and Work - what you need to know as an employer
This will explain all the MUST DO things, such as what your employee is entitled to. Such as: paid time off for anti-natal appointments, maternity leave, maternity pay.

HMRC also have a booklet (E15) Employer Handbook for Statutory Maternity Pay Also HMRC has a Statutory Maternity Pay calculator.

ACAS (08457 47 47 47) can provide you with free advice, plus I suspect some booklets/leaflets.

surpriseme · 23/05/2009 12:44

You need to hire a temp nanny.But if you want to keep options open you could say its temp for so many mths but may become permanant

willowthewispa · 23/05/2009 10:32

I know it isn't ideal from your point of view as an employer, but you really have to employ a maternity temp and keep your nanny's job open for her if she decides to return. If she decides not to come back you can always offer the job permanently to the temp.

mychildrenarebarmy · 23/05/2009 10:14

from here

Advice about statutory maternity pay for nannies
Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) is payable to a nanny who is employed for a period of twenty-six weeks continuing into the fifteenth week before the baby is due. SMP is payable for up to 39 weeks), starting anytime from the 11th week before the baby is due. The amounts payable are 90% of the nanny?s average weekly earnings for the first six weeks and at a rate stipulated by legislation for the remaining weeks. (2008/09 SMP is at the rate of £117.18 per week.)

SMP is fully recoverable by a small employer together with an additional 4.5% and is recoverable by deducting the amounts paid from future Tax and National Insurance Contributions or by obtaining the SMP from the Inland Revenue in advance (which Taxing Nannies can organize on your behalf).

A more specific page

Original poster
foxinsocks · 23/05/2009 10:08

ok, have looked it up on businesslink

basically, if she doesn't resign, I have to keep her job open for a year (26 weeks of OML and 26 weeks of AML).

Thing is, I don't want to get out of paying her. I don't want you to think that. Am quite happy to pay what she is entitled to.

BUT what I want to do is employ someone else (which I am going to have to do anyway) without the fear in the back of my mind that she could just announce she wants to return, then I'm going to have to 'sack' the new nanny (which I would have to do), pay the new nanny for her notice period, and take the old nanny back.

I would really like her to come back but I also don't want my children to get attached to someone new only to turf them out iyswim and also, what I really really don't want is the uncertainty of what we are doing for a whole year.

I hope that makes sense without sounding like a dragon which I'm not at all!

OP posts:
Original poster
foxinsocks · 23/05/2009 09:58

oh no, what I meant was last time I was pregnant (like years and years ago), because I had been working for my employer for a while and it was a large company, they had quite generous maternity pay in addition to stat maternity pay but there was a clause in your contract that if you took the additional pay, you had to come back for X months afterwards.

In the nanny's contract, she only gets statutory pay so I wasn't sure, with just statutory pay, if there is any obligation to return because I seem to remember you have to give a date when you intend to return to work so I wondered if there comes a point, if you KNOW you don't intend to return, where you have to inform your employer.

Just that if she doesn't resign, obviously I have to employ someone else to do her job and then keep in mind that the nanny could come back to it so will have to watch the notice periods etc. and I will need fair warning that she intends to return (or not!).

OP posts:
Longtalljosie · 23/05/2009 09:53

You can't get her to resign if she's not coming back. I don't think you can even ask her what her intentions are in that regard.

If you're giving her 6 weeks @ 90%, then SMP, I'm also pretty sure she wouldn't need to pay anything back, because that is the legal minimum. I assume your employer gives more than that?

I sympathise, but the fact is she's completely entitled to have her 90% pay for 6 weeks, have her SMP and then not come back.

Original poster
foxinsocks · 23/05/2009 08:57

you can claim back SMP but I'm not sure what happens in those first 6 weeks when you pay 90% of the salary. Not sure you get that back (but might be mistaken - you'd think I should know really ).

I won't initiate it then, you are right, but I have a feeling she will initiate it with me.

Thing is, whenever I've got pregnant and had a job I knew I wasn't going back to, I've resigned but only because otherwise I would have had to pay back extra maternity pay (as it was in my contract).

With no extra maternity pay in her contract, I wondered how it worked for employees with respect to resigning after maternity leave. I assume you can do this whenever you feel like it or do you have to give a date when you are coming back when you go on maternity leave?

OP posts:
Twims · 23/05/2009 08:56

Agree you get paid to pay her maternity pay - you just claim it back.

umchats · 23/05/2009 08:52

I may be wrong FIS but I think as asmall employer you can claim SMP back from the govnt. YOu need to look up the rules.

On the other point you must not have the discussion with her at all.

She is entitled to Mat leave and SMP and the time to make her own decisions.

Leave well alone and enjoy seeing her bloom. You do not want to ruin a good relationship and find yourself with a claim for unfair dismissal and sex discrimination. The damages you could be forced to pay are horrendous compared to the mat pay you sre now contemplating. You might be looking at a remortgage not just raiding your savings.