Me again - looking for advice on maternity pay (France)

[flyingcloud]

So this time round it's my second pregnancy (and if any of you remember I had lots of issues with leave/pay and rights first time round, even though I took the minimum 8 weeks).

This time I am taking my full 16 weeks. Can any of you wise people help me (I have looked online but not sure I really understand)?

What is the French equivalent of basic SMP?

What is the minimum you can be paid during the period of leave?

Who pays this? (no collective agreement in place AFAIK)
What is the maximum you can be paid?

Thank you again...

It's Social Security that pays it so Assurance maladie, I guess?
And it's based on percentage iirc. Go to Amelie.fr and it should explain everything here

Thanks winnybella. I think I just about get it. I seem to have a form of dyslexia when it comes to reading about French social security, etc.

I got 16 weeks full pay. I thought that was standard?

Then you can go for congé parental which is like SMP.

Hi flyingcloud! Congratulations on your pregnancy!

You'll get about 80% of your salary paid by social security, and then your company may top up the rest, depending on their convention collective. Most,but by no means all, companies do this.

When are you due?

Hi there, thanks for your replies. Bunny have you had a second dc?

I am due February.

Is the 80% paid for the 16 weeks or for 9 weeks as my company are telling me?

Yes, my little DD was born in August

The 80% paid is for 16 weeks, 6 before the birth and 10 after. There is a new measure, just introduced recently, whereby you can shorten the antenatal leave by a maximum of 3 weeks and add it on to the postnatal leave. This has to be in agreement with the medecin du travail.

And don't forget the two weeks "grossesse pathologique" that you can get extra - most doctors will give this no problem.

Is your company a French one or not? I'm pretty sure even a foreign company in France would have to respect French law regarding maternity leave. 9 weeks sounds fishy to me.

Have you declared the pregnancy with the CAF?

Thanks again Bunny. Having been a misguided martyr last time, I am determined to get as much time off as I can this time.

Originally I said that I would shorten ante natal leave to 3wks but at 27.6 wks am regretting this as with a very active 21mo dd I am just starting to struggle...the morning rush to get her to the cm is killing me. So I may ask to take the 6wks and take my remaining holiday+ conge pathologique at the end.

They are an English company (but I am employed in France with a French contract). They aren't being difficult, just ill-informed and misguided. In all cases they revert to the default of what the English employees get, so they get full pay for first 9 wks of their mat leave followed by Smp topped up to 37.5% of their salary for 30 wks. They have offered me this too (although not 39 wks mat leave just 16 wks).

Does all that make sense?

I have delared the pregnancy but having paperwork/bureaucracy issues as DH is not under CAF/assurance maladie but another SS called MSA (for agricultural workers) and in the 18m it took me to get my carte vitale I was also covered by them under his policy (it's not a mutuelle...)

I hear you on the bureaucracy as DH is caisse militaire. I still don't have a carte vitale btw and I've been working in France since 2008!

Are you in a French union? They can be very helpful.