Starting new job while pregnant - telling your employer

[conejotonto]

I am writing in regards to a few legal matters related to maternity, unfortunately my situation is quite complicated and I cannot find any advise on that.

I worked for a little bit more than a year prior to a dismissal, which happened before the 15th week before my baby is due. I will most likely be eligible to the maternity allowance.

I have struggled to find a new job for the last two months but finally it happened, and I am starting soon. I know my deadline to inform the employer about my pregnancy is the 15th week before the due date, however I was unemployed during that week. Now I will start working for the new employer after the 15th week. When should I inform them about the pregnancy? What is my deadline to request my SML (if I am eligible for the leave, with no pay of course)? Do the dates of 28 days notice for changing the leave day and 8 weeks for changing the return date apply?

If anyone can even help with a link to any legislation on that, that's good enough.

Thanks for help in advance.

Thank you very much in advance.

Just bumping this for you OP. Someone else recommended this site on another thread www.pregnantthenscrewed.com (warning, we have not checked them out)

Everyone is entitled to maternity leave, regardless of the amount of time they have worked for an employer, but you won't be entitled to statutory maternity pay. Since you have passed the 15th week, you are going to have to tell the employer now - employing someone who is pregnant requires an employer to undertake certain activities, including risk assessments.

Other than receiving SMP, all other rights and obligations remain in place. There is nothing complicated about it at all. Assuming you are still employed by them at the time, you will accrue holiday entitlement.

I'll be blunt though - don't expect this to be career enhancing. You attended an interview, after having been previously dismissed from your employment (I hope you told them that?), and failed to mention that you will be taking maternity leave within a matter a weeks. The law may say that is your right, but I doubt the employer will appreciate it no matter what the law says. But at this stage, the longer you delay in telling them, the worse it will look. Starting off on this foot isn't ideal. Don't make it any worse.

Yes how dare you be pregnant op!
Had she told them in the interview it could have been seen as blackmail.

Yes how dare you be pregnant op!
Had she told them in the interview it could have been seen as blackmail

Don't be ridiculous. This is the real world, not some fictional version of it where there are unicorns and pink edged clouds. Warning someone who has failed to mention pregnancy, not only at interview but also at the stage of being made an offer will not go down well with the vast majority of employers. Maybe the world shouldn't be like that, but it is. Which is why I said that I hope the OP told them about the dismissal. If not, and the employer ever finds out, then they have the perfect grounds to dismiss.

Personally I think it would be great to have a world in which pregnancy and maternity do not matter, and where men shared the employment impacts of parenthood equally. But this is not about what I think. I is also not about what you think. If anyone believes that the vast majority of employers are delighted to hear that their new employee will be disappearing on maternity leave within weeks of starting the job then speak up now..... Warning the OP that this isn't likely to go down well is the only sensible or fair thing to do. What maternity leave they may be entitled to is possibly the least of their problems. Should we not mention that?

Don't be ridiculous. Hiding your pregnancy in an interview allows them to reject you on the grounds of you not being the best person for the job. Telling them you're pregnant at interview could be seen as a veiled threat that you will be pursuing discrimination if they reject you.
I have no idea what all your unicorn waffling was about sorry. I can only assume you had a lot to drink last night

You tell them as soon as possible, so probably on your first day, or within a couple of days. Proper notification including the dates you intend to take your maternity leave (it's not something you 'request', you just tell them when you plan to start it).

All the rules around maternity leave that you've found also apply to you, no reason they wouldn't. The only different thing is that because you were unable to notify your employer by 15 weeks before due date, you'll have to do it later. Everything else is the same.

I'm sure OP is perfectly well aware that her employer isn't going to be jumping up and down with excitement. It is what it is, no need to pile on and tell her how much she's inconveniencing someone else.