Can i include left over holiday into my maternity leave?

[SpringChicken]

Have sat down with my bosses (Who are also my parents) and decided on when i should take my maternity leave and how long for - My last day is 25th June, returning 3rd January.
However, it suddenly entered my head about holiday entitlement for this year.

Included in my package at work i get 5 weeks paid holiday per year, one week of which has to be taken over Xmas - Am i still entitled to the same amount of holiday even though i'm only working for half of this year? If i am, can i add that on to my maternity leave?

I know it sounds silly to ask because i work for my parents but they do som much for me i really want to do whats fair and right and do things by the book - i know they would still allow me to have my 5 weeks holiday even though i'm only here for half the year but i want to do what is right and only take what i am entitled to.

Thanks in Advance

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yes, yes, yes! It's just your ordinary holiday entitlement, you can take it immediately when your mat'leave finishes. A lot of women do. HTH.

Yes. I took mine at the beginning because it meant I could accumulate more weeks worth of that year's bonus. Also it is full pay but you might be able to negotiate the money rather than the time off if it suits you (and/or the company better).

Probably better to take it at the beginning, as it is at full pay, rather than SMP. Most employers will agree as it makes things so much simpler.
It is also worth taking a couple of days here and there before you leave, as you will need a break, and have lots to do!!!

The rules are my work are that anything accrued so far has to be taken before going on leave or tagged onto the beginning. So going at the end of April I will be entitled to 1/3 of my leave most of which I plan to tag onto the front of it since my due date is 16 May. During ordinary mat leave I continue to accrue hols but have to return to work before I am allowed to take them. But since I don't go back until end of Oct will struggle to fit them in. Might manage to wangle being paid for some instead.

You are entitled to your full leave although when you take it depends on company policy.

When I had dd1 I left work on mat leave in October. Our holiday year ran Jan - Dec with the rule that any unused time could not be carried forward to the following year so I had to take my remaining leave beforehand. However if a company routinely allow employees to carry holiday forward then they would have to let you tag it on to the end.

Bozza, the law is the law and if you can not fit in your holidays before the end of the holiday year becasue you are on maternity leave they will have to pay you in lieu.

I'm also uncertain about you having to return to work first but I would need to check up on that. Unfortunately all the info is at work and guess what, I started my leave today. Regardless of whether you take leave at the beginning or end of your leave it should be at full pay.

Springchicken - I also work for my parents.

Too tired (and pregnant) to read through all the responses but as an example I had 13 days leave when I went on maternity leave.

I returned to work part time 2 days a week so I was able to have 6 and a half weeks off which I tagged on to the end of my maternity leave. It stretched out my maternity leave which was great as I was still breastfeeding DS.

My holiday entitlement accrued while I was on paid maternity leave but not when I was on unpaid.

Hope this makes some sense.

just make sure you don't have problems with carrying holiday entitlement over to another year. For example - my holiday year starts in October, I can only carry over 2 days to the next year. My baby was born July, so I had to use of the current years holiday before my maternity leave started, then take some of the next years allocation at the end of my maternity leave - if that makes sense.

I think the holiday I accrued on Maternity leave was paid to me when I did not return. Not sure whether that is a statutory right (like keeping your benefits during your time off) or dwon to company policy though. Maternity Alliance would know if you wanted to check.

Pamina 3, yes that is a govt requirement, the latest day you are allowed to start your maternity leave is your edd.

LizS I think that the leave you accrue is a statutory entitlement whether or not you return although as I am not at work I can't look through the documents to check.

Bozza - do realise you do not physically have to return to work to get your annual leave. You just resume to annual leave IYSWM.