Maternity Pay - How many of you were lucky enough to get extra from employer?

[RedKennedy]

Hiya
Im 23 weeks and just had the chat with my bosses about maternity leave and benefits and been told that they cant afford to supplement my £108 p/w. Im gutted. I wasnt expecting to be on full pay or anything but for some reason thought as they arent getting anyone in to cover me, they should be able to give me something. On the other hand I work for a small company of 7 people and as such we dont have policies on this kind of thing. Im just so gutted as it now means that I will only be able to afford to be off for the 3 months or so that Im being paid (6 weeks at 90% and then my holiday entitlement). Dreading the thought of going back to work so early. GGgrrrr. If only my DP could earn a bit more!

HI GLITTERKITTY if you're there...

I've just been told I can only get 6 months at full pay and 3 at SMP, not 9 months at full pay which is what I thought (hoped) I would get.
Is that the same for you too?

i had 100% pay for 6wks, then standard maternity pay until 6mths. I chose to take an extra 4 months unpaid to stay home with DS longer.

6 months full pay. another six months of accrued leave and full benefits (private medical, pension etc).

Worked for one of the biggest companies in the world and got a crappy wage so I didn't feel guilty when I didn't return to work after my maternity leave.

I work for a very big company (140,000 employees or so) who don't give a penny over what they legally have to. We saved up pre-DS to give us a cushion so that I could take a reasonable length of maternity leave.

Not always a small/big distinction, although I think small companies tend not to pay over the minimum because they can't afford it while large companies do it because they are mean. But my view may not be entirely unbiased...

Once we've done 2 yrs service, we get 6 weeks at full pay and then the remaining 20 weeks at 75% pay. The last 6mths is unpaid and all benefits are still paid or accrued in absence and then paid on return. Not sure what will happen once the changes come in in Apr though.

what are the April changes?

rubs hands together and hopes for more money

Well I'm sure they'll go to the trouble of adding 50p or something equally as stupid to the weekly amt but as far as I understand paid maternity leave (OML) is being extended from six months to nine months.

ooh! lovely!

was planning on taking 12mths off after next bubba, so more dosh for me then!

2 years service. wow.

we had to have been in service for at least three months prior to the 15th week before expected week of confinement. Translated this means we had to have been there for three months by the time we were 25 weeks pregnant.

Nope, bare minimum here. And as I'm due just at the end of March it's particularly gutting. Just a little later and I'd be entitled to a bit longer of the bare minimum.

The one advantage is this. I don't plan to come back here after my mat leave finishes; I plan to get something much closer to home. Because they're only paying the bare minimum, I don't have to pay a penny back.

You are too honest, bored. I know people due at the end of March who lied about their LMP date to get an EDD in April...

I tried to get my mw to change the date but got told no. I wasn't honest... just frightened, in case they asked to see my maternity certificate or something!

Still after today I have only nine working days to go!

I meant in the very first place (the going-to-the-doctor "Hello, doctor, I'm pregnant", "Congratulations, what was the date of your last period?" conversation, which establishes your due date for the maternity certificate). You wouldn't be able to change it later, no ("I've just spontaneously remembered, several months later, that my period actually started six days later than I told you..." would sound a bit suspicious...).

I wish I had lied - if I'd found out about the maternity leave policy changing on 1 April at the time, I would have done!
I had to have worked where I do for 2 years at my qualifying date to get 12 weeks on full pay followed by 14 on SMP. I'm going to add holiday onto that too - another 25 days.
I work for a massive employer which consistently gets awards for being a really nice place to work. Clearly not as nice as some other places

I work for a huge global IT company, but even after you've worked there for over two years, they pay 6 weeks at 90%, then 2 at 50%, then its statuatory pay until you reach 6 months. After that I'm allowed another 6 months unpaid if I want it. I'm not sure we can manage on just DH's salary so although I'd love to take the full year I don't think its going to be an option.

It seems very stingy considering I know 'equivalent' companies who pay the full whack for 6 months. On the other hand they pay very badly in general in comparison so it doesnt surprise me.

Gosh I really am very luck aren't I? I will stop feeling depressed about "only" having 6 months off at full pay then, and thank my lucky stars!

Can I just ask - what if you are on a fixed term contract? I'm not pregnant - but I am not sure what happens - I've only got a job til October so if I do get pregnant in the next six months I'm not sure what I will be entitled to - I presume is it just the £108 a week - or is it nothing at all? I've paid up my NI for years - surely I should get something?

I'm pretty sure that if you're working in your 'qualifying week' (week 25?) then you get SMP - even if your job finishes before you actually produce the baby.
I'm on a fixed term contract too, but the rules state that so long as you come back for a minimum of 3 months then you get the Employer's Maternity Pay, which is a lot more generous than statutory. Great relief!

I can't remember exactly (seems like so long ago!) . I got the 90% for an extended 12 weeks and then I got 50% for a few weeks and for the last few it went down to the hundred quid bracket. The company employs very few women so I was impressed.

Mine was 3 months full pay and 3 months half pay (6 extra months unpaid) on the condition that you come back for 3 months after.

Just to add to the big company thing - I got 6 months full pay last time plus up to the year unpaid, all benefits accrueing - holiday, pension etc and this time they haven't announced it but I expect to get 6 months full pay and 3 months statutory with the April changes. The good maternity package is the only reason why I stay working at the hideous, faceless, massive finacial organisation I work for (largest financial compnay in the world) as everything else is awful and I specifically moved there the year before I was planning to try and have kids for that reason. Even though it is illegal they didn't pay me a bonus in the year I got back as I had been on maternity leave for some of it and I fully expect not to get one next year either for the same reason. As the other poster says, I am aware how good this is but, honestly, it only barely makes up for working for a miserable organisation in a job you hate but still, can't complain about the maternity package (just everything else).

Statutory minimum here - downside of working for an American corporation where those over the pond think UK maternity leave rights are excessive

Oh no! I had to fight to get them to give me what I was entitled to (claimed a miscalcualtion) then they wanted me on call and got funny as I went on early lave when bump stopped growing.

Those who know who I worked for will be a bit [shcok] given who they are

We get a month full pay, 2 weeks at 90% then half pay + £180 a week for 18 weeks. Things are set to improve from April 07.

I'm a teacher and think if you work for education, NHS or big organization you get a better deal

Hi Bibithree! Yes, just had same advice from HR- so now 6 months full, 3 months SMP, then 6 months off after that unpaid if I want it. Am going to see how I go- SMP is peanuts!