is this discrimination? any experience of maternity pay from employers point of view?

[philippat]

wise mumsnetters, I need your advice and experience.

I work for a local authority. A member of my team has just told me she's pregnant (many congratulations).

We obviously pay SMP, and an enhanced amount of maternity pay for the first 20 weeks of leave.

I have a fixed staff budget. No extra pot anywhere to pay for maternity pay. I have been informed my budget also has to pay SMP (another part of the council gets the reimbursment from IR, I don't see it).

So basically, I can't afford maternity cover. In your experience is this common practice? Do other large employers cover maternity pay from a central pot? Do they at least reimburse SMP to your section budget?

bump

I don't know what most employers do but the few I've asked (about 3 or 4) pay out of a central budget. What you're describing wouldn't count as discrimination against you (is that what you were asking?) but I agree that it sounds very unreasonable!

Again I'm used to dealing (in the past) with SMP coming out of the central pot, but as all the monies are re-embursed to your co/council for the employees, then it should be passed back down the line to you and should not come out of your budget, try the maternity alliance web site, see if they've heard of this from an employeers point of view?

I work in the public sector. As with you, the money doesn't come out of a central pot, but from individual departmental staffing budgets. The IR "reimbursement" (which amounts to 92% of SMP - if you offer enhanced maternity pay you don't get any of the extra enhancement back) goes to the centre and a Department only stands a chance of getting it allocated to them if they ask for it and put a persuasive case to our staffing committee for consideration. More often than not the SMP reimbursemennt is released for cover, but it is not automatic.