can they make you go back after 6 months?

[nappyaddict]

my friend got extra company maternity pay and was told she had to go back at 6 months or pay it back? i thought they could only do that at 12 months even if you had the second 6 months off unpaid?

If it's extra company pay they can put whatever rules they like on it. Statutory Maternity Pay they can't make you pay back.

As long as your friend was told beforehand, they can't suddenly announce after the event that she has to go back or pay it back.

yeah she was told before hand but i thought they couldn't deny you the unpaid additional maternity leave?

They can't deny her the leave no, but they can make her pay back any extra maternity pay if she chooses to take the extra leave. Any pay over and above statutory they can set the rules about paying it back. INsisting someone goes back after 6 months or pays it back is fairly harsh but nothing actually wrong with saying that.

oh i thought that even if they paid her extra she didnt have to pay it back unless she didn't go back after 12 months. very harsh!

It is a bit harsh. Most companies have a rule saying you have to return for x months, but usually they don't specify by when you hvae to return. Nothing saying they can't be specific though I'm afraid.