To expect to be able to take my annual leave after mat leave?

[Birminghambabe]

AIBU or is my employer?

I’ve been working with current employer for around 4 years. I’m on maternity leave and due to return early December. As far as I’m aware because my friends have told me and what I’ve read online is that I accrue my holiday days whilst on mat leave and can take them before or after mat leave.

I was sick around 32 weeks with HG so went on sick leave then early mat and my boss said I couldn’t use my annual leave then, so when I asked if I could just use it after and return in Jan they said no as I can’t carry over as per my contract. Surely as I’m on mat leave that overalls? The contract just says I’m allowed 22 days plus bank holidays per year Jan - dec.

I like my employer but at the same time I think they’re incorrect and it’s a lot of holiday (extra time off with baby) and money.

AIBU? Or are they

They are incorrect, you can carry it over.

However, they can dictate when you take it. So if you’re due back in December and it’s a busy period for the business, they can stop you taking your annual leave straight after maternity over Christmas and you would have to take it at a different time.

You accrue holiday during maternity leave, which you are entitled to take when you are back. However while many take it off the back of their mat leave, your employer does not need to let you do that (as long as you have opportunity to take it). Speak to Acas if your work are difficult

@SunnySaturdayMorning thank you, that’s fair enough. I would be happy with that it’s just they’ve emailed me this morning to say I’m not allowed to carry it over which I feel is definitely incorrect

This explains why they’re partially right and why you’re partially right!
https://pregnantthenscrewed.com/advice-page-holiday-while-on-maternity-leave/

You accrue holiday whilst on mat leave but I'm not sure this overrides the rules about carrying I over into another holiday period. Otherwise you could get someone taking 12 month ma mat leave plus all 5 weeks from the year before after your mat leave plus all 5 weeks from the next yeara period after your mat leave one have another 2 or 3 months off.

My company wanted me to take it before my mat leave started but I didnt want to, i wanted to save it to the end. I negotiated with them as i was leaving in a busy period and argued that they needed me more before than afterwards. They agreed I could carry part of it forward, and they would pay me for part of it, and I'd take a week or so prior to mat leave. But made it clear it was an exception and they didnt have to do this and I should have been taking it in the normal leace period

They are not partially right, it's unlawful according to that link so they can't be partially right! Unless you mean about OP taking it straight after mat leave. That, they have a say in. The carry over of it they have no say in.

You are able to carry it over: my work leave year runs Jan-Dec; I went on maternity on 30 December so no opportunity to use leave so it has to be carried over! My work thankfully would prefer me to tag 2023’s leave on the end of maternity leave and have me off for one long chunk than I return and have 2033 AND 2024 leave to use in one year – I’d have so much leave it would be disruptive!

Yes, that’s what I meant by ‘partially’ 😂

I accrued bank holidays and holidays that carried over with no penalty. I used to add on to my mat leave. Others used to do 3 or 3 day weeks

Essentially they didn't penalise me because I had a baby as was still their employee. Not sure what was company policy or legal requirement

However it makes sense from a discrimination perspective to be allowed to carry it over

Yes you can carry it over.

Do you have a trade union rep?

Your employer is incorrect. You accrue leave as usual during mat leave (including bank holidays you cannot take of they are usually part of your allowance). Could it be your manager has not spoken to HR and is unaware of the rules?

@EsmeSusanOgg funnily enough my manager is also HR! I am sure he is incorrect so will speak to him today

Have a quick scan of ACAS and GOV.UK for the links you can send him to confirm. GOV UK is less likely to make him prickly if he has got it wrong! More neutral.

@Birminghambabe - here's the GOV.UK guidance. Relevant leave bit is at the bottom of this page: https://www.gov.uk/maternity-pay-leave

General rights/ guidance here: https://www.gov.uk/employee-rights-when-on-leave

This is the bit you want to highlight: Employees continue to build up holiday entitlement and can take any holiday they’ve accrued (built up) before or after the leave.

I think this is the page you need:

https://www.gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights/calculate-leave-entitlement

It makes clear at the bottom you are allowed to carry over leave.

All the PPs are correct that you can accrue and carry over the annual leave.

I just wanted to add that I would think of a few scenarios of ways you could use the leave to suggest to your boss when you talk to him - ie if he's being difficult already, given him a few pre-made options that you like to choose from, rather than leave it in his hands to tell you when you can take the leave, as he may mess you around and that may feel like you are giving him 'work' to do as well.

Common options are - tag it onto the end of your maternity leave (this is handy if they are employing maternity cover as that person could stay in role for several more weeks and cover is made easy)

Use it to make a graduated return for yourself ie you come back for 2 days, take 3 days holiday, then build up to 3 days at work, then 4 over a period of 2-3 months. This can be really nice for the employee but trickier for work to cover. If you think they really wouldn't go for that you could use it as a bargaining tool - "I'd really like to do a graduated return but I know it's a busy period so how about I just take it all in one go and then you have Maternity Cover Bod in place to take care of things for you."

If your partner is able to take any shared parental leave, use your annual leave to take some time off together at the end of his leave, or to effectively swap back to being the at-home parent for a while once his leave is finished.

I hope your conversation goes well and your boss sees sense!

You do accrue leave whilst on Mat leave but any leave from before mat leave has to be used within the year it was accrued unless you were on Mat leave for the full year and therefore unable to take it, in which case it carries over. You cannot carry bank holidays over. So, it will depend when your sick leave started and when your leave year runs from and to.

You can take it but not carry more over than the company's rules allow. With my 1st as she was due in May I took my annual leave first and then started my maternity leave, which spanned the annual leave year so when I went back I had my full quota of annual leave for that year to use as I needed.

My second was due in February, and the annual leave year started in January for me, so I tagged my annual leave on at the end which allowed me to return with more pay just before our first Christmas with 2 children without actually returning to work until the new year.

That’s not true. It can absolutely be carried over. If you accrue it, you can take it before or after.

The company’s rules do not override the law. You can absolutely carry over any holiday you accrue.

This

This

You can carry it over because you can't take it on mat leave!

How did it go @Birminghambabe

We will agree to disagree. I know because I took my employer to task on it. And lost.
I went on maternity in May and because I had opportunity to take my leave between 1st April and going on Mat leave I lost the right to carry it forward. A colleague had a similar scenario but was on sick leave from 1st April until she started her maternity leave and therefore had no opportunity to take annual leave so was allowed to carry it forward. Desperately unfair but true.