maternity pay/ working

[strawberrykate]

Hi can anyone help?

My job have stated they need a GP note saying I'm fit to work if I work over 34 weeks (re-done weekly). I thought unless you were ill and it was pregnancy related after 36 weeks they can't force you to start maternity leave? So in other words if I don't provide the note what can they do? I don't particularly want to because
-wasting time in GPs and walking around when I'd rather rest!
-havin GP moan at ME for their daft idea, I can picture it now 'I'm a doctor, I issue SICK notes....'
-I really dislike my GP as they've been pretty horrible this pregnancy acting like I'm a fusspot (I've made 2 visits!) and last time I ended up in tears after going there and days of feeling low. (probably partly hormones, I'm easier to bring down at the moment)
I've had the request from the head of HR.

I feel so depressed about all the fuss/ maternity pay/ tiredness at work today. My SIL is pregnant and all relaxed in Ukraine where attitudes are so different. 8 weeks less than me and sunning herself in the garden, stopped work at 4 months. If I were still in Ukraine I would be entitled to 3 yrs full pay, 6 yrs of having the job held open and you have to finish at 7 months!

Thank You, will repost. I'm a teacher.

I saw in the press this week something about the law changing from sick notes to these fit to work thingies for anyone who has been off so maybe it's to do with that? Does seem like a bit of a waste of time tho!

3y full pay holy shot get back to the ukraine.

Both my pgs I just told them when I wanted to go - could work right up to due date if i'd wanted to - the only caveat being th ething about if you are off with pg related sickness from 36w it automatically triggers your mat leave thing.

Has the law changed recently? I am pg and dont fancy weekly treks to the bloody gp at the end - it's the last thing you need! Between work, kids, hospital trip every other day to get BP checked if last 2 anything to go by, I wouldnt have time! And you have a job getting an appt within a week at my gp anyway - sounds ludicrous.

fabhead- to be fair the average monthly salary there is £100 (my SIL earns £80) per month so moving there would screw up the mortgage a bit! It is the norm in ex-soviet countries though, I know my hungarian friend receives the same.
I wouldn't worry to much, my borough has done this for years and it seems to be isolated to them.

ah, there's a flaw in every plan

what a pita for you tho - maybe you can get the GP to write a letter saying that having to come and get letters all the time is causing unecessary stress!

strawberrykate, not sure if I can be of help, but just to say that my school asked the same thing of me and put a lot of pressure on to start maternity early because of low blood pressure, but my sympathetic doctor said that no, as it was a symptom of pregnancy, it is not a reason to stop working. That doesn't sound like the same thing they're saying to you, so not sure why.

What did come out of it was that the school should be adapting to your needs as a pregnant woman, i.e. if the problems are caused by prolonged standing, inability to visit loos , room changes etc., it is the school's responsibility to adapt around you, and these issues ad your classroom should have been assessed as soon as they knew you were pg.

I did feel just like it sounds like you do, and didn't want to go off early because mine was a late summer baby, and would have lost all the accumulated summer holiday pay. It occurs to me that sometimes schools wish to organise their maternity staffing in a way that can disadvantage you just because it's simpler for them. Hope you can find a way through this. If it's any encouragement, I stayed to the end of term despite their grumblings, and you should be able to too.

Sorry for drivelling with no self-edit - very long day and off to bed...

ooosabeauta-school are fine. It's the LEA that are arse over tit and sadly they are the ones running payroll! Dread to think what they'll manage to do wrong.

Oh, then that does sound strange! How would the LEA have any idea how fit you are to work in pregnancy? I've never heard of our LEA doing this, so yours must be an odd one. You're right to worry what else they might do wrong with payroll though - mine paid the non-statutory half pay, unmarked in my pay packets, even after I had stated in writing on the form and on the phone that I did not want it because I would not return to the job, and then claimed back over £1800 in one fell swoop, simply saying that they overlooked my form, and 'most people take it anyway, so we just assumed you would'.

You're allowed to work beyond 34 weeks of course, nearly everyone does, and if they have no knowledge of your medical history AFAIK they really shouldn't be asking you to do this.