NHS maternity leave problem...

[ovumahead]

Hi everyone,

I hope you can help me out - I worked for the NHS for 8 years, and then had a gap when I worked for a private company for 5 months (thought no choice of my own, as there were no NHS jobs locally due to them reworking the services). Now I'm back in the NHS and have been told that any break of 3 months or longer means you cannot carry over your mat leave entitlement. So, I can have maternity leave, but would only get statutory maternity pay which would be almost impossible for us to survive on!

Any ideas as to whether this is contestable, or whether I should just wait another year before trying for a baby? The thought of waiting longer makes me feel very sad. I'm currently 32 so am ok for time, but really want another baby...!!!

Any ideas?

When I worked for the nhs, a 3 month break was disregarded, but any longer than that was classed as a break in service.

Have you access to the maternity policy - it should be in there.

Sorry that does sound like a significant break in service and certainly the legal position on continuous service is not as generous as what the NHS appears to allow.

Were you made redundant before you went to private practice and how long have you been back with NHS?

If an employers occupational maternity pay policy is based on length of service then of course that means length of current service.

I find it a bit that anyone would think otherwise - especially when it's publically funded.

Public sector employees are very fortunate to have generous occupational maternity pay schemes - many third and private sector employees have no such benefits regardless of service length.

Anything that an employer pays in addition to SMP is entirely at their own discretion, so no it is not contestable.

The only time that you could probably argue that a benefit based on length of service is unfair is under the new age discrimination legislation. But if the minimum term is 5 years or less you're extremely unlikely to get anywhere.

Could you start saving now for a baby? We did three and a half years ago when I was pregnant. We still haven't spent it all because most of our larger expenses (holidays, nice clothes and shoes, meals out and wine) are incompatible with our new lifestyle.

Have an extra year and really enjoy yourself

Not contestable as part of agenda for change. when did you come back to nhs? You only need 1 years continuous service?

Oh and when does the year's service need to be in force? Is it around the time of conception or do you have to have a year's service when you go on maternity leave?

it.s all in the agenda for change handbook. You need to have 12 months continuous service at the beginning of the 11th week before your edc.

I doubt the terms have changed since you left NHS employment. Do you have to commit to returning for a minimum period too to keep the extra ? If you are n't sure it may be worth just accepting the statutory terms now rather than having to pay back the discretionary amount later. It might take longer than you think to get pg anyway. Of course if you really could n't afford it on smp alone then you need to reconsider your timing and cut spending to save up.

Sorry I don't work in the NHS.