NHS fixed term contract (secondment) ending during maternity

[woefullypredictable]

Hi everyone, would appreciate hearing specifically from anyone who has encountered this maternity situation as an NHS employee or manager.

I am currently on maternity leave, and have elected to stretch my maternity pay over 39 weeks. My maternity period runs from May 2021 to February 2022.

I am on a fixed term contract for 2 years, due to end in September 2021. This is a temporary promotion for me and is two bands higher than my substantive post in the NHS. The fixed term contract was initially for 2 years with a view to extension - the role is advising on a piece of work which is anticipated to go on for at least a year longer than initially predicted. Had I not been taking maternity leave, therefore, I would have expected my fixed term contract to be extended. I have a male colleague who joined the project part of the way through who is also on a fixed term contract - his contract has recently been renewed for a further year from its expiry until March 2022. The workload on this project can vary from time to time and is now in a slightly quieter period, but it is expected that two people will be required to work on it for what will be a very busy period from around September to January. No arrangements have been put in place for maternity cover for my role as yet (probably due to lack to forward planning, rather than any question on the need for cover).

Whenever my fixed term contract does end, I will return to my original role within the organisation which is a permanent contract.

I have not heard anything from my managers re extension of my fixed term contract. Management are notoriously reactive and poor at planning ahead when it comes to maternity leaves, contract extensions etc (eg my male colleague’s contact had actually come to an end about 3 months before it was formally extended!) To be fair, my contract doesn’t end for another two months, but uncertainty re renewal impacts on my maternity pay. Although I have sought and am awaiting clarification from payroll as to exactly how it has been calculated, my payslip suggests that my stretched maternity pay over the 39 weeks is based on my fixed term contract ending in September with no consideration of extension, and the bulk of my maternity pay being calculated on the lower salary of my substantive role.

My understanding is that failure to renew a fixed term contract without good reason equates to dismissal from the post. Obviously if my colleague’s contract has been extended due to the project being ongoing, I would have continued in the role and had my contract renewed accordingly but for my maternity leave. I am anxious about how this has been/will be dealt with, and the potential to escalate to a grievance - for context, I had a poor experience with management around my return to work during my last maternity leave which had a significant impact on my mental health at the time, and I am worried that this maternity leave could also be impacted negatively by poor handling.

Has anyone been on a temporary promotion/secondment in the NHS which was due to end during the period of your maternity pay? How was this dealt with? If your fixed term contract was renewed/extended, how was this dealt with in your pay? Managers - ideally would you have ensured these arrangements were put into place before your employee went on maternity leave?

Apologies for long post to cover all the detail, any experience from NHS colleagues would be very gratefully received.

Hmmm not sure sorry not very helpful. But I suppose why would they extend a work contract if the person was not available to actually work

@christmascrazylady because if the reason the person is not available is due to maternity leave, then that’s maternity discrimination

Ask your union to clarify the position with HR? Take the second guessing out of it all?

Not sure op but ACAS has a free helpline if no joy here.

Thanks @wonderpants - I know this is the sensible approach, I just have anxieties around these types of issues with work based on previous experience, and I find it difficult to deal with unknowns. But yes, once I get clarification from payroll, I think I get the union to advise. Thank you

Thanks @PiffleWiffleWoozle I hadn’t considered ACAS, I will bear that in mind

I don't know much about most of these issues, but I would have thought your maternity pay should be paid based on the salary you were on during your eligibility period, regardless of contract extensions or other considerations.

Relevant experience - was at the end of a 2 yr (part-time) contract when I took my 2nd maternity leave, leave was paid as per normal NHS maternity leave. Contract was extended in order for me to return to work for the minimum 3 months (I think), I took accrued holiday prior to reducing hours to 50% for the remaining weeks. The relevant child is now mid-teens and this was a medical post, but I would have thought some of this was relevant to your situation nevertheless.

Good luck sorting enough of it out ...

Thanks @Pythonesque that is useful to hear, and I also have wondered whether the eligibility period is what should dictate the maternity pay, but it is not clear at all how it is being calculated. Will raise this point with payroll/HR.

@woefullypredictable

Thanks *@wonderpants* - I know this is the sensible approach, I just have anxieties around these types of issues with work based on previous experience, and I find it difficult to deal with unknowns. But yes, once I get clarification from payroll, I think I get the union to advise. Thank you

Yes, I've also been there in the NHS. Don't get into playing the game. Good luck!

Obviously if my colleague’s contract has been extended due to the project being ongoing, I would have continued in the role and had my contract renewed accordingly but for my maternity leave
The issue is that this is your interpretation of the situation. You can't assume this would definitely be the case. Even if it was, it doesn't mean that it would be the case now that they are finding that he can take on the role on his own. You say that they haven't replaced you because of poor management, but it would be so easy for them to say that the reason they didn't is because the project changed focus, and as such the job could be absorbed by one person only.

The one consideration is whether this should have triggered a competitive process. I don't think this applies to fixed terms role though, so again, they could justify that he got the extension and you didn't. Ultimately, it's easy to see it that they are not extending it because you are off on maternity, but much harder to prove it.

Thanks @vivainsomnia. I appreciate that I can’t assume anything, however we were both appointed to the project from a waiting list compiled from the same recruitment process. I was higher on the waiting list than my colleague, and so was appointed first when the job needed at least one person, he was appointed six months later when it became apparent it was a two-person project. Therefore if the employer now wishes to have only one person on the job, that is obviously fair enough, but it would be unusual I think for that decision-making to be based on the female employee’s unavailability to work due to having a baby, when appointments were merit based previously?

For what it’s worth, my male colleague is a good friend and very supportive, and thinks it is totally inappropriate to renew his contract and not mine in the context of maternity leave. He alerted me to his context extension so that I would be aware if there were any issues with my own.