URGENT - New 'Keeping in Touch' Days

[abgirl]

I have a meeting this morning to discuss the new Keeping in Touch days that have come in with the revised maternity conditions. I am tempted not to agree to any (which I think I can do) - I really don't want to think about work during Maternity Leave and it would also mean organising childcare to come into work (normally my DH is SAHD and he's going back to work full time while I'm off).

Has anyone else made arrangements regarding these dates and what was agreed? How did you define 'reasonable contact'?

I never discussed these days with my employer, but I have had several phone calls from my immediate boss regarding some of the projects I was working on, but I don't mind that as there was no official handover to anyone else and I kind of know all the answers so it saves them hunting through mountains of incoming mail to sort it out.....one thing that had pissed me off is that I gave my immediate boss my personal mobile and e-mail numbers (thay asked for my company mobile back while I'm off) and he has only gone and e-mailed them to the whole of the office

Not sure what the correct definition of reasonable contact would be though...maybe you could try discussing it with the Citizens Advice Beareau (if they still call it that) or try their website?

Not mush help there...sorry...

Hmm... can't offer you any advice but can totally understand how you feel. The CEO from my last company tried to get me to take my laptop with me while on ML so I could 'stay in touch' with any relevant emails and that I should stay cc'ed on them!

Needless to say, I said 'no way.' Think I knew deep down I wouldn't return!

I had a 5 year career break with the civil service and they classed keeping in touch as sending me regular newsletters/emails discussing changes within the department. That was it. Occasionally they sent me questionnaires to complete but they were usually irrelevant as I wasn't in the day to day loop any longer. Obviously if you're going back after your current leave, it might be more important for you to keep up with pressing issues but I would have refused to go into the office on my normal maternity leave, unless you want to.

I have never heard of this (can you tell how much help I am going to be!). My work don't contact you at all while you are on mat leave (I have just returned )

acas would be a good place to get advice regarding rights

I think the reason I am thinking of saying 'no contact' is when I was pregnant with DS I had to leave very suddenly, and they coped adequately without me. I really don't want to be bothered with phone calls/emails when I am trying to look after a newborn and a 2yo.

AFAIK you don't have to do them. However for some people they're actually useful. I'm currently off with ds (who was born in April, but due in March so I don't get the keeping in touch days) and I know - and don't really mind - that there will be occasions when it would be helpful if I could be available for the occasional day. As it stands if I help them out I'll have to do it unpaid, as otherwise it means that it ends my mat leave - the new setup would make it much easier all round. (In practice I should be able to just swap odd days they need for extra days after I go back, but in theory this can't happen - so shhh don't tell anyone!).

I am on a career break for 5 years and as part of it I have to do 10 KIT days a year. I have found them useful in that I can keep up to date with everything (my area of work changes constantly) and so going back to work won't be such a huge shock.

Having said that it is written into my agreement that I will do them so I have no choice. DH loves it as he gets DD for a whole day and can do what he likes without me interfering! They are known as Daddy-Daughter days in our house.

I have told my employer that I will be willing to work KIT days, so long as they pay me my normal salary.

this is a quote from www.workingfamilies.org.uk:

You may work for up to 10 days without bringing your maternity leave to an end or losing your SMP or MA. This is to enable you to keep in touch during your leave if you wish to. You can work during ordinary or additional maternity leave but you cannot work during the two weeks of compulsory maternity leave immediately after the birth (four weeks for factory workers).

The keeping-in-touch days do not have to be consecutive. They can be used for any work-related activity including training, conferences or meetings. Working for part of a day will count as one day?s work. Your employers can also make reasonable contact with you during your leave, for example, to discuss your return to work. Any work during your maternity leave must be by agreement and neither you nor your employer can insist on it. Days of work will not extend your maternity leave period. You are protected from dismissal and detriment for refusing to work during maternity leave.

The new regulations on keeping-in-touch days do not say anything about how much an employee should be paid for working, so it will be a matter for agreement between you and your employer. The minimum that you must receive for the week in which the keeping-in-touch day falls is the SMP rate you are entitled to for that week. If your employer pays you any extra contractual pay your employer is entitled to offset it against any SMP paid for that week. When agreeing your rate of pay for Keeping-in-Touch days, your employer should make sure they comply with rules on the National Minimum Wage and equal pay.

For example, if an employee on maternity leave earns £50 for a keeping-in-touch day, she will be able to retain her SMP. The £50 earned will be offset against her SMP, meaning that she will receive £108.85 for the week. If she works for three keeping-in-touch days in the same week and earns £150 she will receive £150, her SMP being offset against contractual pay paid for the same week. The employer will be able to reclaim the normal amount of SMP from HM Revenue & Customs. Once the keeping-in-touch days have been used up, she will lose a week?s SMP for any week in which she does any work, even if it?s only for one day. If a week contains, for example, the last of the keeping-in-touch days and another day of work, she will lose that week?s SMP.

Thanks all (particularly Gingerbear) for the informative emails. Have had meeting with line manager and agreed to 1/2 day to do Mat Leave cover handover in the next 4 weeks (as long as baby doesn't arrive) and then 2/3 days later in the autumn for catch ups/training if they are appropriate and I agree to them at the time. No other contact apart from details of any vacances at the next scale up. Also asked for time in lieu instead of any extra payments but that request is going back to HR.

Overall am happy with this.