working on maternity leave

[chocbiscuits]

For very long and complicated reasons to do with flexible working and Wednesdays, (which regulars might remember), I am going off on maternity leave as early as possible and taking a large chunk of annual leave beforehand. .

Will I be able to work for another employer (if I could find some ad-hoc arrangement or short term working plan?)
(a) during this time before the baby arrives?

(b) after my maternity pay is finished (am still allowed to be off for up to a year)??

I'm not an expert, but I seem to recall my terms of employment said: "No bloody way." Not exactly that, you know, but more or less....

you need flowerybeanbag

as far as I know you may not work (for anyone) whilst on mat leave, excluding your 10 keep-in-touch days, without forfeiting your statutory mat pay, even if the work takes place after the 9m mat pay has finished.

You are still under contract while on ML and accrue holiday and benefits etc - so don't think you can get another job without forfeiting.

you can use your Keep in touch days with your existing employer but it is very frowned upon to work for someone else.

~Even working in your own time when employed full time is frowned upon by some employers/contracts.

If you work for any other employer during your maternity leave you automatically forfeit your statutory maternity pay unless you already have two jobs in which case you can return to work earlier in one job than in the other.

After your maternity pay is finished you can work for another employer unless you have any kind of exclusivity clause in your contract.

Hi chocbiscuits

I'm going to copy and paste from the working families website on this subject

'If you work for another employer during maternity leave but before your baby is born, it will
not affect your SMP. In addition, if you worked for more than one employer before the birth
you can still get SMP from one, and return to work for the other, in certain circumstances. If
you worked for employer A in the 15th week before your baby was due, you may start back at
work for employer A after the birth without affecting your SMP from employer B (although you
must inform them of what you are doing). However, if you did not work for employer A in the
15th week before the baby is due your SMP will stop in the week you start work. You can also
do self employed or voluntary work without any loss of SMP. '

Hope that makes sense, website is here with useful factsheets. Come back if it doesn't make sense. I think the problem is more likely to be your contract, the 'no bloody way' clause puppymonkey mentions, particularly if you are getting more than SMP.

Thanks FBB and all,

need to read the relevant maternity leaflet at work but it seems that they are reviewing it now....

it could be feet up for a while then and painting the house!