NHS Fixed term contract ending 1 week before DD - what are my rights/options?

[Willowtree88]

I'm looking for some advice from people who may have found themselves in the same/similar situations as I'm feeling extremely lost and stressed. I am currently employed in a clinical role within the NHS working part-time as I have my son 3 days a week. I have been employed by the same trust for 4+ years, always on fixed-term contracts that have been renewed (usually last minute but without any concern about funding source). This is the standard in our trust in which permanent contracts are rare and, where they exist, reserved for very senior roles.

Well, I have just found out today that the funding for my entire team is being cut and my role will cease to exist as of 31st March 2023. This has come as a big shock as we were given no indication that the funding wouldn't continue to be renewed as it always has been, but I appreciate that this was always a possibility given the fixed-term nature of the contract. I am 6 months' pregnant, due in early April - 1 week after the official end of my contract.

I've been in touch with HR who are notoriously useless (didn't manage to pay me for 4 MONTHS after I returned from 1st maternity leave, disputed pay for my KIT days, ignored my requests for mat leave until my son was 2 months' old etc. etc. etc.) and so I am anxious about speaking to them this time without having all my ducks in a row and being clear on my rights. Predictably, they've told me that they owe me 'nothing' as my contract will have ended by the time baby is born and directed me to HMRC. However, my understanding is that since I have over 12 months' service and will still be employed by 15th week prior to EDD, they should still owe me full SMP. I understand (although am hugely p*ssed off) that I'll likely lose out on my enhanced maternity pay and other rights due to the contract ending, but I can't accept that they owe me absolutely nothing after 4 years' continuous service.

We've been invited to apply for internal vacancies as a team. I am very conflicted about this because, as much as I want to protect my employment rights and continuous service as much as possible, it feels extremely unfair on the other team who may employ me knowing that I'll be taking 12 months' off very soon after. Am I within my rights to apply for other internal roles and just let them know I will be going on mat leave? Or would this be seen as bad practice?

To make matters worse, we have just sold our house due to the extortionate mortgage interest rise making it unaffordable to stay after the remortgage and my significantly reduced income after baby. We had hoped to find somewhere smaller in a cheaper area outside of London and nearer my family (who have offered support with childcare). However, now I'll be officially unemployed going into mat leave we won't get a mortgage and so we're likely to have to move in with family and/ or rent until I can get a job again. I know we're lucky to have these as options, especially given the difficulties so many families are facing, but I can't help but feel extremely overwhelmed by everything at the moment going into my third trimester.
Any help or advice anyone can give about what my options are to get through this would be appreciated.

Legally you can apply for the roles.

Then once you are offered a role and accept then you tell them you are going on maternity leave.

It will be obvious when you go for an interview that you are pregnant.

If it's continuous employment, it's still redundancy even if the contract ends.

If you worked there during the qualifying week, you get SMP. No ifs, no buts. I've had to fight this as my (public sector) HR department at the time didn't understand this fairly basic rule.

ACAS and union sharpish, they are acting unlawfully.

If you are not entitled for SMP you are entitled to maternity allowance. When I claimed it many years ago now as a contract worker whose contract had come to an end it was the same rate as SMP. See givernement link below.
www.gov.uk/maternity-allowance

To be fair if you apply for a role and meet the criteria and don't get it they have to be very careful about maternity discrimination- I'm sure you'll be fine in securing a role

They still have to pay you maternity pay, including the enhanced pay. They can't just say, sorry goodbye.

In terms of the roles, you need to do what is best for you and apply anyway.

maternityaction.org.uk/advice/redundancy-during-pregnancy-and-maternity-leave/

This has a lot of info. If you have already qualified for SMP then they have to pay you it whether your job ends or not

Have a look at this thread - second post is helpful.

They basically have to extend your contract to allow you to have 52 weeks maternity leave, even if there is no job to come back to.

And get applying for those other jobs too!

There is a similar culture of fixed term contracts where I work. I was made permanent automatically after 4 years. Check out this guidance: www.gov.uk/fixed-term-contracts/renewing-or-ending-a-fixedterm-contract

Particularly:
Any employee on fixed-term contracts for 4 or more years will automatically become a permanent employee, unless the employer can show there is a good business reason not to do so.
However, an employer and unions (or a staff association) may make a collective agreement that removes the automatic right to become a permanent employee in these circumstances.

It may be that they removed the automatic right, or possibly HR don't know about it (mine didn't!). I'd go back to HR with that and say that you consider yourself a permanent employee.

Get hold of the trust maternity policy - usually on the intranet or ask your manager for a copy. My understanding is that you have full employment rights due to your length of service.

Can you join a union?

I have been in this exact situation (do you work in clinical research by any chance?)
As you have been there more than 24 months you should be treated as if you were permanent staff. And as you are pregnant, if there are internal roles that you are qualified and experienced for you should be offered that role automatically.
When I was in this situation HR were useless and didn't seem to know the law regarding this. A solicitor friend helped me draft an email to the Head of HR mentioning maternity discrimination. I hard nothing for several months and then I was eventually invited to a meeting where I was offered a settlement agreement, or given the choice to take the alternative job. I took the settlement agreement. PM me if you would like more details.

I'd consider speaking to my midwife about a C-section prior to the contract end date

This is unnecessary as she will already have qualified for SMP from 15 weeks before the birth.

But if she's still employed at the time of going on mat leave she will get employer pension contributions equal to the amount she was receiving before. I think.

@Willowtree88

• once you hit 15th week before expected birth date your employer is obliged to pay all your SMP. Note: If you are made redundant (which you are) they can pay any future SMP in one lump sum in your final salary.
• You are entitled to Occupational Maternity Pay up to your last day of employment. This is because you are entitled to redundancy pay from the next day.
• You would also be entitled to be paid for any annual leave accrued up to your last date of employment.
• There are tax and NI implications if SMP is paid in a lump sum. Contact HMRC to resolve this.
• You are entitled to both statutory and possibly contractual redundancy pay (depends on your contract and policies). Redundancy pay is basically a payment in lieu of salary to help tied you over whilst you find a new job. Paying OMP and redundancy pay would effectively be paying you twice. www.nhsemployers.org/articles/nhs-redundancy-arrangements
• The EA 2010 has maternity & pregnancy as a protected characteristic. This gives you the right in a redundancy situation to be given priority for any vacancies. So with a clear conscience apply for the internal vacancies, particularly as you are being encouraged to do so.

ACAS and Pregnant then Screwed can help but the best people are your TU reps.

@Willowtree88

Make sure you apply for maternity leave and pay observing deadlines, like before 15th week before due date. Personally I would do this asap and add a covering note with a link to HMRC guidance www.gov.uk/guidance/statutory-maternity-pay-business-changes-that-affect-payment

Hi can I ask how this panned out? I am in a similar position. Work for the nhs and I’m on a fixed term 1 year contract. This is due to end first week of May and baby due August!

@Hattie888 - sorry to resurrect an old thread but I am also now in a very similar position to you (pregnant during a fixed term contract with baby due a couple of months after the contract end date). I've been permanently employed by the NHS Trust I am on a fixed term contract with for years prior to this contract. Did you get OMP? Were you able to apply for other positions whilst pregnant? (I know that you can't officially be discriminated against but I don't know whether that is the case in practice!)