End maternity early to be placed on furlough

[Pottedfern]

I am currently on SMP which is due to end in May and I was planning on taking 13 weeks unpaid leave after this. I work in hospitality and my organisation has furloughed the entire company bar a few key members of staff.

I have spoken to my employer for some guidance on what happens when my SMP finishes and whether I would be able to use some outstanding holiday for some additional pay during this time if this organisation is still closed down. They have advised that they can place me on furlough if I want to end my maternity leave early and claim the 80% rather than SMP.

Financially this would be huge relief- my partner is not a high earner and has also been furloughed so money is extremely tight at the moment and we are struggling to make ends meet.

I had planned to take a full year with my baby but I feel that I should potentially go back earlier if it’s best for my family financially.

Does this seem like a good idea? Am I missing any obvious pitfalls? Any advice would be much appreciated

This sounds ok to me as you will get more money. But if lockdown ends early will you regret not taking longer maternity leave.

As PP said, you need to think carefully about what you would do if lockdown ends early. Would you regret not having the full year off? Would you be able to sort childcare?

Thank you for your responses. I have been lucky enough to have already had 7 months off so as much as I would like the extra time I hopefully wouldn’t feel like I had missed out too much. As for childcare I have a childminder lined up and my partner is also able to cover 2 days a week due to his shifts.

My employer also seems to think we will not be reopening until mid august!

All fun and games until lockdown ends early !

I would do it - you can only ever make the best decision available at the time and this would mean you’re much less stressed.