Maternity repayment - do I have to?

[Mumsupportneeded]

Hi there,
im in need of some advice. I am due to return to work in March after 1 year maternity leave (some enhanced).
A new career opportunity has come up with better hours pay etc that I’ve been offered. My old job paid enhanced maternity leave and are trying to enforce pay back. There was nothing in my contract/ parental/ maternity docs prior to going on leave about the need to repay.
However they did send a doc highlighting the rule for me to sign agreeing to it but I didn’t see this as it was sent during my maternity and not in advance (i have not signed). Am I obliged to repay, even though notice of repayment was made during my maternity leave and i didnt sign agreeing?
Having to do so will meaning staying as it is too large a sum to repay.

Based in the UK

@smilingeleanor wasn’t there, first mention of it was in the doc I received asking me to sign while on mat leave

This.

Sending it only two weeks into your maternity leave is early enough that the company could reasonably argue that by continuing to accept the enhanced pay you were agreeing to those terms.

Take proper legal advice but I suspect you will be liable to pay it back.

I mean you have had the document as you started maternity leave and then merrily carried on taking the money so yes I think you need to repay it. Is there a minimum period you have to work? With us it is 3 months, part of which can be accrued annual leave.

@Comefromaway fortunately I haven’t resigned (officially or otherwise), if it comes to it I will just work the 6 months required unfortunately

I think you will be obliged to pay It back. This will be in your terms of employment under the section on maternity leave, it's not conditional on you signing anything else. That's my understanding. The enhanced payment is conditional on you returning to work for a certain period.

Ask them to highlight where this was in your contract. Say you don’t recall anything about this clause. They won’t be able to produce anything you’ve signed to say you agreed to this…

@WimbyAce 6 months, the last 10 weeks of my year off however have been annual leave accrued so it’ll be 4 months I would have to return for. Unfortunately likely too long to get the other job

Mine was pro-rata sliding scale over two years so 3/4 of it if I left after 6 months, 1/2 after a year etc. But it was in our company maternity policy. I think that is the key question really. But even if it isn't, do you want the worry of them possibly coming after it just as you start a new job and parenting a one year-old. Even if you are right it's on a technicality and not in the spirit which is meant to work both ways.

Have you spoken to your new employer about this? They may be prepared to contribute to the pay-back costs or hold the job while you work the required time to avoid the pay-back.

@Viviennemary it wasn’t in my contract though or any parental/maternity company docs or the docs personal to me in advance of maternity. The first mention of this was the doc sent 2 weeks into maternity

You can accept a contract by implication I.e you took the money, so might be a little harder to prove but not impossible you’d need to repay.

As an aside, someone at my work did this and as it had such an impact on our small business they shelved the policy and now no one gets enhanced pay.

@Nottodaythankyou123 fortunately not a small company

This is what I was wondering, is there a point in time where they have to send that for you to sign that point in time? Would be when you started getting the enhanced pay maybe…

Is your current place unwilling to match the hours/pay you've been offered?

It's kind of a dick move to take enhanced enhanced maternity pay from a company and job hunt for something better while you're getting paid from them for doing nothing work-related, and then also not want to pay the money back on top. They've been paying you for a year with zero benefit to themselves.

@GlasgowGal82 briefly but unfortunately don’t think that’s an option

Weren't you surprised that they kept paying you if you weren't aware that there was enhanced maternity pay?

Apply for the new job, the application process will take time anyway and if they want you they will wait for you, if not, what have you lost?

Edit: sorry I misread, you have already been offered the job.
Can you start back earlier, and therefore limit the time your new employer would have to wait for you?

So you were aware for the last 9 months in full but continued to take the money?
You can hardly say you weren’t aware.

just seen the update that the form was sent out two weeks into maternity, that’s pretty much the starting maternity leave as far as I’m concerned you dodged it and didn’t sign it on purpose for some reason? why would you do that? You should pay it back and I think you should have to, most people do.

I don’t think it’s as standard as people think it is. If I hadn’t returned to my job there wouldn’t have been anything to repay.

Me neither, I checked quite carefully - I didn't leave and wasn't planning to but wanted to know the position if something changed.

The policy they have around having to pay back study support for professional exams is pretty clear and easy to find. There really didn't seem to be one for maternity.

@heyhopotato i worked for them years before maternity which was the only clause in receiving enhanced so definitely not a ‘dick move’.

they are normally very inflexible work hours and in the office so that is why I searched elsewhere.

I literally went back one shift and then went on the sick for the remaining time and used holiday proir to be going on the sick in this exact circumstance

youd need to search past tribunal decisions to see if there is any precedent.

if it had been sent 6 months into a 12 month leave when OP had already received a considerable sum she’d have a good case.

but only 2 weeks in when op will onky have received a tiny amount of enhanced pay, if any, I think her chances of arguing the case is much less.

@Chasingsquirrels i knew there was enhanced pay but there was no mention of a clause to return until after I started maternity leave

Generally this clause should be included in the policy. Save a copy of it today.

Speak to ACAS but I am not sure the company could enforce this legally. It should be set out in the policy and communicated to you clearly. Presumably you had meetings with HR leading up to your time off. If it’s not in the policy, why not? Does this apply to fathers on paternity leave? If not, it could be discriminatory.

Don’t worry about ‘leaving on bad terms’. They weren’t worried when they sent you this document 2 weeks into your paid maternity leave. And you have a right to challenge them if their maternity policies do not fully capture the terms of their paid leave policy.

As for people saying this is standard. It is not. It varies by company. Plenty have a clawback clause, plenty do not. It’s should be clearly set out in the policy. Which it isn’t.

Remember you’ve got all your accrued annual leave. This can be deducted from what you owe and reduce it.