Help/advice needed regarding work and maternity pay

[MissH995]

I am 20 weeks pregnant on Friday. I am a high risk pregnancy (due to previous losses and now recent result of group b strep which I know is nothing to worry about now it's been found) I work in a well known supermarket and since I've been pregnant the role I was in has been changed to caretaker as it's only really a role I can do for so much longer now I'm getting bigger ect and bending down and stretching to clean shelves is proving difficult. So in January I'll have to go off of that duty and just do close shifts till maternity leave. Which is 11pm finishes.

To the point I'm making, I've been off a lot at the start because of sickness, and now I've suffered with leg pain and back pain so I've been off for 2 days and my doctor has wrote me a note for amended hours and not to be on my feet for more than 4 hours. So for example I was standing in self service checkouts for 5+ hours sometimes without a toilet break unless I really stressed I needed to go. The place is so short staff and not trained probably since everyone has been leaving. I work 5 days a week with 2 days off which are normally a Tuesday and a Sunday. All 6am starts and Christmas week she has changed it to 5am. My doctor wrote in the note no more than 8 hour shifts. Which can easily be fitted in to get my 30 hour a week contract. Which from the start I've said to her I would rather just do my contract and not loads of overtime on top as I was doing 45 hour weeks.

My boss didn't understand this at all when I gave her the note yesterday. She said "so you'll work 8 hours with no break so you're just doing a 8 hour shift" "and I'll put you in 8 hours every shift" which isn't the case because then it would be 40 hours a week if she wants me in 5 days a week. So I was confused at what she didn't understand about that and about the not standing for more than 4 hours. So she said "so you can't stand at all" yes i can stand but not for the silly times they've been expecting me to. She then said I owe them hours for being off sick and it has 9 hours on my banked hours, but she's said she would say it was 20 hours if she has to guess. But the screen for payroll said 9 hours, so her guess is silly when the number is there on screen. She's then said I'll get less maternity pay if I work my contracted hours, but how does that work out since I'll be earning more than £120 with my contract hours. Even if I worked 10 hours less, I'd still be earning more than £120 a week. Which I presumed that's how maternity is paid?

She honestly doesn't have a clue and I feel like I'm being sold down the river because of her lack of knowledge. Which we've come to heads about before when she wanted me to take my scan appointments and consultant appointments as holiday days. To end the conversation she said why don't I go on maternity leave early and I really don't know how I keep my cool with her🙄

You need to speak to HR immediately really.

@hugr I've spoke to my area manager and HR when she tried to use holiday days as appointments. They just corrected her and she did my appointments correctly. It's just now I feel like I'm going back to square one where she's doing a riddle again. Sort of feel like I was speaking into the wind with HR and my area manager. So I just want some backup for myself from anyone who has been in this situation and knows the ins and outs so I know for myself instead of having them tell me what's what as I sort of feel like I'm being sold down the river

Doing fewer hours can affect maternity pay as the first 6 weeks is at 90% of your wages in roughly weeks 17-25 of pregnancy. The rest of paid leave is at 90% of wages or £152ish whichever is lower so again depends on actual wages in those weeks

She sounds thick as pigshit about the rest. It would be illegal not to have a break on an 8 hour shift. Can you sit at the till? Maybe talk to Maternity action or acas if talking to HR isn't helping

There are a few different things here - but I can tell you about maternity pay and leave. The average £120 per week figure is the minimum you need to earn to be eligible for Statutory Maternity Pay. It's an eligibility criterion - it doesn't determine how much SMP you get - just whether you will qualify for SMP at all.

I don't understand how you "owe them hours" for sick time you took off?

@dementedpixie I've asked to keep just to my contract hours of 30 hours a week. So that will be £321 a week with my exact 30 hours. That's why I was so confused when she said I'd get pay less since you have to earn £120 a week for the £152 maternity pay. Correct me if I'm wrong

[quote MissH995]**@dementedpixie I've asked to keep just to my contract hours of 30 hours a week. So that will be £321 a week with my exact 30 hours. That's why I was so confused when she said I'd get pay less since you have to earn £120 a week for the £152 maternity pay. Correct me if I'm wrong [/quote]
As I explained - the £120 week is to qualify for SMP at all.

@dementedpixie has explained how the amounts can vary - as once you qualify, the actual amount can be a percentage of your normal pay over a period.

There are quite a few online calculators that can give you an estimate.

@daimbarsatemydogsbone that's exactly where I am stumped if I'm honest. If I don't work the hours hour can I owe them? Don't I just become the only loser? And then her asking me to bring my maternity leave forward🤯 I think she's leading me down a garden path thinking I'm silly

@daimbarsatemydogsbone I've done the gov maternity calculator. That gave me the answer of £151 something pence a week. So I'm presuming that's correct

As a well known supermarket with an HR department, I would expect them to have developed an array of employee policies. Are you able to access them? For instance, in a company handbook or company intranet if these are available.

As others have said there’s quite a bit going on here, sorry it’s stressful.

On sick leave, you can self certify for up to 7 days or doctor can sign you off. You should be entitled to SSP at least, your company may offer enhanced sick pay. Some larger companies will have additional enhancements for sick pay in pregnancy. Sick absence in pregnancy shouldn’t contribute to normal absence management procedures/trigger points. You could be signed off for any length of time potentially, although from 36 weeks it would automatically trigger SMP/maternity leave.

You should have had a maternity risk assessment, and reviewed as needed throughout pregnancy, to identify how to work safely and suitably (eg in line with your doctor’s advice).

Your entitlement to SMP and maternity leave should be fine, as others have said the main difference is the first 6 weeks of SMP are 90% of pay based on average earnings in weeks 17 to 25. That’s the only difference in terms of earnings and SMP. Presumably this means your company doesn’t offer enhanced/occupational maternity pay, but if it does then SMP rates are fairly irrelevant for the period in which you get OMP.

As you know you’re entitled to paid time off for antenatal appointments. Whilst it is reasonable to expect you to do this in your own time where possible (eg if you worked, say, two days a week and were able to choose an appointment day), ultimately this shouldn’t be questioned either.

As there’s so much going on, definitely consider talking to Maternity Action and/or ACAS for advice. All employers need to comply with the law (obviously!), but particularly as a larger employer with an HR department it is particularly poor form for them not to be on the ball.

[quote MissH995]@daimbarsatemydogsbone I've done the gov maternity calculator. That gave me the answer of £151 something pence a week. So I'm presuming that's correct[/quote]
If 90% of your contracted wages is more than £152ish then you'll get the full amount. If you were off sick and got only statutory sick pay in the relevant weeks (17-25) then you wouldn't qualify for SMP as you wouldn't meet the earning criteria. It depends on your actual pay in that 8 week period as to whether you get the full amount or not.

@dementedpixie I've been off once at 18 weeks and twice at 19 weeks. But as a sick days, and one as I went in and got sent home sick. So will that count? Was paid for of course the time I was in before I got sent home and then the 2 days I've been off Saturday and yesterday were just sick days

You need to speak to HR properly and I would personally speak to ACAS before this. You need to request a proper meeting with HR.

You need reasonable adjustments for your pregnancy. You need breaks. These are legal rights.