Maternity pay confusion!

[Homey91]

Hello I was told when I was on maternity leave I would receive 3 months full pay, 3 months half pay then statuary maternity pay. On my wage slips I have SMP and OMP. In December SMP was a lot higher then OMP, January OMP is a lot higher then SMP, February both amounts are nearly the same as is March and April. All these months have a different figure however in total it is roughly the same as a normal months salary. Does anyone know the difference and why some months SMP is higher then OMP and vica versa , and also if this is correct as I'm pleasantly surprised that my pay has not yet dropped.

Smp is statutory maternity pay. By law your employer gives you 90% of your normal salary for 6weeks and then 20(ish) weeks of maternity pay at a rate set by the government. Your employer voluntarily gives you enhanced pay (OMP) to top your overall pay to the levels you said in your OP. Your payslip is showing these amounts separately.

Bear in mind that smp is paid weekly so in a 5 week month you get more smp than in a 4 week month. Bear in mind we don't know how much you earn/when you went on leave and so it's not possible to say whether the ratio you have received is correct.

You can always query it with payroll if you're worried about being overpaid.