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Original poster

dont want to go back will i have to pay my materbity pay back?

16 replies

aprilgirl1 · 29/04/2007 21:37

hi havent been on in ages, soooooooo busy with the little one hardly find time to get on any more but never mind... well im due to go back to work on 10 july and the thought of it is making me feel sick especially where i work its horrible so was wondering if i choose not to go back do i have to pay them any money back? dont want to phone hr as dont want them to know im thinking of not going back??? any halp would be grateful!

OP posts:
Washersaurus · 29/04/2007 21:43

I wrote and told my employer that I had changed my mind about going back about 1 month before I was due to start back. They wrote me a letter telling me how much I owed them in maternity pay and that I should pay as soon as possible - I still haven't repaid anything and I haven't heard anything else from them (DS is 2 in July). Am anxiously waiting for that letter/phonecall though

pinkspottywellies · 29/04/2007 21:44

I think that if you only had statutory maternity pay (6 months of about £108 per week) then you don't have to pay it back as this is paid by the Government. If your employer pays extra to this (i.e. more money or for longer) you might have to pay this back to them.
HTH

Original poster
aprilgirl1 · 29/04/2007 21:46

my employer pays full pay for 6 months then a percentage for the next 6 months? so not sure?

OP posts:
Original poster
aprilgirl1 · 29/04/2007 21:47

i hope you dont get the letter then washer!!!! i just so dont wanna go back!

OP posts:
Bellie · 29/04/2007 21:49

It depends on your maternity policy - the company that I used to work for paid enhanced mat pay and if you didn't go back you didn't have to pay it back . However, friends that didn't go back had to pay theirs back.

Can you ring HR and say that you are not sure about dates etc and can you have a copy of the mat policy which will tell you? Or is it on the web site?

CantSleepWontSleep · 29/04/2007 21:50

Your employer is very generous! It would be unusual to be that generous and not expect you back, but the only way you can find out is to check your contract of employment/employee handbook/company maternity policy.

It would be quite normal to expect you to pay back anything over and above SMP (90% of salary for 6 weeks then about £108 for remainder of 6 months) if you don't go back.

LIZS · 29/04/2007 21:52

iirc they have to have made it clear before your ML started that anything over and above SMP (+ payments in lieu of any benefits in kind) was conditional on your return , perhaps for a minimum period, in order to be able to reclaim it.

Original poster
aprilgirl1 · 29/04/2007 21:53

B*lox looks like i'm going back then cos they really have paid me well ... how long would i have to go back for before i leave ( just in general?? )

OP posts:
elkiedee · 29/04/2007 21:56

What you'd have to repay depends on what they have paid you. Statutory maternity pay doesn't have to be paid back, I don't think, but if they pay you over and above that then you do.

CantSleepWontSleep · 29/04/2007 21:56

3 months is the minimum I've heard of, but not sure of the max - maybe they'd do a sliding scale of payback if it was longer than that?

LIZS · 29/04/2007 21:58

Do you have a HR handbook including maternity guidelines or your contract ? You may not have to pay anything back unless they stated so up front.

elkiedee · 29/04/2007 21:58

At my employer you have to go back for 6 months, but it's still 6 months if you only go back part time even if you were full time before.

chocolatekimmy · 30/04/2007 09:47

Depends on your terms and conditions and any company policy. What was given to you before you went off? Do they pay you over and above statutory (90% for 6 weeks then basic for the rest)?

I was paid an additional 8 weeks at 90% and the rule is that I have to return for a minimum of 3 months otherwise I have to pay them back.

Is there anyone there that could find out discreetly on your behalf? You need to find out really.

Genidef · 01/05/2007 07:50

You could get a colleague to ring HR for you. But if you've been off for a year, you might want to make sure that whatever they find out applies to people who went on maternity leave whenever you did (I'm assuming last year) in case the policy has changed during that time.

You could always ring yourself. What can they do? I don't mean to be patronising - and I can see why you feel awkward about this. But I just think you can't be the first person that's asked about this.

lucykate · 01/05/2007 07:57

i think that, in your situation, where you've had extra maternity pay, yes, you are supposed to pay it back if you don't return. but, only if this has been agreed in writing before you went on maternity leave, if it hasn't, then they can't ask for it back, or make you return to work. i read this somewhere on the internet last year as i didn't return to work myself after a years maternity leave, i'll try and remember where i saw it for you and link.

Eleusis · 02/05/2007 08:37

Aprilgirl, how much you have to pay back, or for how long you have to return to work should be in your contract or some other documents you would have signed when you went on maternity leave.

I'm truly amazed at the generosity of your company. Why don't you want to go back? They sound like a great company to work for.

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