Mat leave question

[Beccarollo]

Do you accrue holidays while on maternity leave? My employers claim you dont but I thought you did.

Does anyone know?

Yes you do, and you can add them onto your maternity leave and/or be paid in lieu.

Does this also apply if your not going back to that company after mat leave?

I think you do for ordinary but not for extended. I was not allowed to add them on at the end but could add previously accrued ones on at the beginning thereby pushing my start date back. I believe a colleague got paid for some of hers because it was too near the end of the year to take them.

You should accrue holiday while on maternity leave, at least I did. There's a booklet that you can find on the DTI website (www.dti.gov.uk/er/individual/matrights-pl958.pdf - sorry links not working for me) that should help.

pc ate my last message

I think it may depend upon what you have formally stated so far.ie. if you have already stated you are not going back they may be able to argue differnently.However IME (5 years ago so entitlements/timings may have changed) I stated formally at around 8 weeks post natal that I would be retaining my right to return. Towards the end of my 6 months extended leave I tried to negotiate a longer Career Break which ended up being agreed as 5 years (imminently to expire, long story). At that point I believe I was paid for holiday I had accrued during my leave.

The Maternity Alliance should be able to advise you in your specific circumstances but I would think you should be entitled to whatever you have accrued up until you state you will not be returning.

hth

You accrue holiday as normal during your ordinary maternity leave of 26 weeks but not during your extended leave up to 52 weeks. You also should keep any other contractual benefits (company car etc) during your ordinary leave.

I was told that if you intend to return or say you do)you acrrue your normal holiday entitlement during OML, then the statutory minimum of 20 days/year pro-rata during AML