Time off in lieu of bank holidays during mat leave

[Smokeandapancake]

My boss claims to have received conflicting advice but acas advised me that I was entitled to take my full 30 days annual leave before or after mat leave. My contract states 30 days including bank holidays.

Acas advised that I can only be on one type of leave at a time so should get the days saved for bank hols during my mat leave to spend before or after I go.

My boss has conceded but I felt like I had to really fight my corner for it. Has anyone else experienced issues like this?

Sorry I meant to say as well, I just wondered if women have lost out on leave that they're entitled to because of this. The usual sources don't have any clear cut advice.

You accrue leave whilst on Maternity leave at the same rate as you would do in work and can take it after your maternity leave has ended.

If you have accrued holiday you can take this before your maternity leave starts to effectively lengthen your leave if you wish.

Your boss is wrong and acas right

This is from CIPD website as a standard Policy: HTH

^Holiday entitlement accrued before maternity leave

Pregnant employees are entitled to accrue statutory and contractual holiday during the entire maternity leave period. Entitlement to accrue holidays is not affected by maternity leave.

The employee will be advised, prior to her maternity leave, of any holiday she is entitled to take before her maternity leave is due to start. The Company reserves the right to require her to take all or part of her remaining entitlement before her maternity leave commences.

Holiday entitlement accrued during maternity leave

As holiday entitlement continues to accrue during maternity leave, the Company reserves the right to require her to take the accrued holiday entitlement immediately after her maternity leave ends. Alternatively, the Company may agree that the outstanding holiday entitlement can be taken at a suitable time after she returns to work.

Additional holiday entitlement accrued during maternity leave

Where the Company provides additional contractual holiday entitlement (in excess of the statutory holiday entitlement of 5.6 weeks), the Company reserves the right to pay her the equivalent value of the additional leave accrued. Alternatively, the Company may agree that this holiday can be taken after she returns to work.

Returning to work after maternity leave

The Company will discuss the various options regarding holiday entitlement with the employee before she returns to work.

If the employee decides to take some or all of the holidays that she has accrued at the end of her maternity leave, she must submit a written request to the Company giving the relevant notice, in compliance with the Company procedures for requesting annual holiday.^

Thanks kingfisher, my boss has agreed it and a combination of info from gov.uk about maternity leave and holiday entitlement and info from acas did convince him. I hadn't seen cipd though - I don't remember it coming up when I googled either and to be honest I've not heard of cipd before.
I just wondered if other women have lost out on days because they've been told that bank holidays don't count which is what I was told initially but luckily I disputed it.

Smoke - I'm not sure I understand. Was your boss trying to suggest you were entitled to less (fewer?!) than 30 days?

I think lots of people don't realise they may be entitled to bank holidays on top of their annual leave accrued during mat leave. It does depend on your contract though.

I am so pro maternity rights but nonetheless think that the accruing of holiday while, um, not actually there winds up employers and is a bit daft. It began with a few large employers being uber cautious and then took hold as standard practice. There is evidence that it is never what the legislators intended. And it makes no sense.

I suppose if it is your right then you can stand on those rights, but IMO it is this kind of attitude that gives women a bad name sadly. It is like technically you can ask for an extra day of holiday if you are ill on a day of holiday, but you wouldn't get a good reputation at work if you did that in ordinary circumstances.

Hi anything, yes he was trying to give me 22 days to spend how I wanted (30 minus this year's 8 bank hols). He said he asked his solicitors and they'd said that bank holidays didn't count as I was technically his employee when they occurred.
I wasn't sure so said I'd seek advice and he said he would too. Of course once I looked into it I realised that the statutory minimum for paid leave for a full tone employee is 28 days so he was being really quite naughty trying to pull that one.
It's sorted now though and I don't think he meant any malice in it, it just made me think how easy it is for small companies like the one I work for, with no hr department, to provide pregnant women with less than they are entitled to. Perhaps I'm wrong though, perhaps it is rare to have such a fool in charge!

I do see what you are saying plum, but for me I get nothing over the statutory minimum maternity leave and pay, which is peanuts. With that in mind, I don't think its unreasonable to want to take annual leave - one of the very few perks I receive in my job - before or after my mat leave.

Smoke - you wouldn't have had anything from google on the CIPD because it is the industry professional body Chartered Institute of Personnel and development.

I didn't understand your initial question which was why I provided you with that information.

Ime I don't think many women miss this and like you undertook further research if there is no written maternity policy

So, if you take a year's maternity leave, you're then entitled to another 28 days annual leave at the end of that (that you will have accrued over the year's mat leave)?! I don't know if my boss knows that. I wonder how to bring it up without looking grabby...

How does this tie in with a company's holiday year, because normally they wouldn't let you carry any untaken holidays over?

The company just has to make sure you have the 28 days per 'holiday year' if that is the system they have. So they need to let you take any owed days before mat leave, carry them over or pay you for them if the holiday year ends while you are on leave.

Fox - often your policy allows you to carry over while on maternity leave as you aren't allowed to be penalised because of your pregnancy, and if not you should be encouraged to take you leave before your maternity leave starts.

I know what you mean about looking grabby fox, like plum said up thread I think some employers might resent it.
It definitely didn't make me feel fantastic having to fight for it but when you've got a little one on the way you've got to put your own needs first haven't you.

Maternity is one reason that is given for carrying holiday over even if your company holiday policy states otherwise .

OK, thanks folks. I will have to find a way to tactfully bring it up! I'm off on mat leave in 3 weeks. I've still got 7 days holiday to take (from this holiday year, which ends with the tax year), but I think my boss would rather pay me for them, rather than me having the time off. So then next year's holiday I suppose I would take at the end of the mat leave.

I'm using all my accrued 7 weeks and 3 days worth of Annual Leave to add on to the end of my Maternity Leave. I always knew we accrued A/L during Maternity but was pleasantly surprised that we accrued B/H days too

I'm sure I read somewhere that you only accrue AL for the first 26 weeks of mat leave. Can't seem to find where now though!

Jealous of your 7 weeks AL Writer! I've never worked anywhere that does more than 4. My DH's work shuts down over Christmas & Easter so he only gets 8 days he can pick for himself! But anyway, that's not the point...

Those 7 weeks and 3 days are inclusive of the 7 or 8 Bank Holidays too though It's still pretty good as I only work 30 hours a week. I am lucky though as it's enabling me to have 12 months off....though I joked to my Boss that I'd probably hate the SAH role and be desperate to get back