Maternity leave/pay

[nonamemummy]

Do you have to be in a job for a certain amount of time before you are allowed maternity leave/pay?

Maternity leave - eligible as soon as you start
Maternity pay - you need to have worked there for 26 weeks by the time you are 25 weeks pregnant I.e. you cant be pregnant before you start working there

Yes. It depends on the individuals company policy as to whether you are eligible for enhanced pay, but if you’re not you will be able to apply for government maternity allowance which is pretty much the same as smp.

The above info I gave is for Statutory Maternity Pay. Enhanced pay may have different eligibility criteria

Okay thanks everyone. I had my kids young, I was in college not working so didn’t have to worry about mat leave. But I’d like to have more kids at some point but don’t get how people have babies when they have a job. Surely it’s not enough money to get by on is it? And what happens when the mat leave is over, it’s before the baby is even 1 isn’t it? Seems to young to be leaving

Mat leave is 52 weeks although after week 39 its unpaid. You could save up beforehand to fund your leave. If there's a partner they can help fund leave too

Some jobs do offer much better maternity pay than just SMP - at my work you get 6 months full pay, then 13 weeks SMP, then the rest of the year as unpaid leave. Plus you've accrued a year's worth of annual leave over that time, which you can use to extend the time you're off but also getting paid. So, if you're planning for future possibilities, then looking at what individual employers offer in terms of maternity pay and taking that into account in your plans.

...is well worth doing. Pressed post too soon!

Pretty sure my current employer only does it for the senior staff, which I’m not. I’m not planning on having any more yet, just curious for the future
Think I’m more worried about having to leave a baby so young

By law you get 3 months off & it depends if your job offers paid leave

By law you get 3 months off & it depends if your job offers paid leave

This is complete rubbish if you are talking about UK law. By law you need to take 2 weeks off. You are entitled to 52 weeks leave. Pay is dependent on how long you have worked for the company. If you dont qualify for statutory maternity pay then you may qualify for maternity allowance

Ooh noo not uk law. This is Us law in Louisiana

What's your point then?

Reread the messages from the very beginning and you will find your answer,just because it wasn't phrased the way you want it to be doesn't mean it's not helpful to the person asking.