mat pay on fixed term contract

[littlefrog]

Can someone help?

I had a 2 year fixed year contract. Had DS after about 1.5yrs: took 12 months maternity leave. Have come back 3 days/week; contract now ends end June 09.

Am pg again, due 1st May 09 - so I'll have 2 months of my contract left to complete.

I'm not doing a job that needs 'filling', but it is NOT normal to have 2 periods of mat leave like this, and I feel bad about it (to do with how my post is paid for - my salary and mat pay come from different pots).

I have been wondering about asking to change my flexible working arrangement (less than a year in, so they don't have to) to work 4 days, and 'work off' the days before I start mat leave. That would also, I think, mean that I get slightly more generous mat pay (?) Is that a good idea?

And finally, the mat pay policy says you must return for 6 months if you're to get mat pay (not SMP, obviously) - how does that work in a situation where I don't have the option of returning for 6 months?

This is v contradictory I know - on the one hand I feel bad about messing them around, on the other I'd like a reasonable amount of mat pay!

Sounds like a good idea to ask if you can work more days. It would mean your maternity pay is better because SMP is worked out based on your average earnings for an 8 week period from week 17 to week 25 of your pregnancy, so if you can earn more during those weeks that will help. All depends on your employer being happy with that, obviously.

If your employer offers more generous maternity pay it will be for employees to encourage them to come back. If I read your post correctly, you won't be employed after May next year, your employment will have ended, is that right? You will still get your SMP as you will have met the qualifying requirements and will have been employed at the required time, but your employer is not obliged to pay you anything else, and as you've identified, you are not in a position to come back to work anyway which is one of the criteria for their scheme.

I would expect them to identify that you will not be eligible for their extra pay scheme and make that clear to you, but if by any chance they overlook your individual situation and send out a letter saying you will get full maternity benefits including the extra pay, flag it up to them.

thankyou v much flowerybeanbag, that's helpful. one question, I assume the only bit of SMP it'd make a difference to is the first 6 weeks, is that right? And I'd get the full £105/week thereafter - or is there a reason why I might not get that, given that I only work 3 days?

Yes you'd get the full rate (currently £117.18) after the first 6 weeks, as long as 90% of your average earnings isn't below that figure. So as long as you get £117.18 or more for the first 6 weeks, you will get £117.18 for the rest.

I'm not convinced I explaining that very well, but I'm sure you know what I mean.
Here.

v clear, thank you!
now i just need to work out with everyone what's best with regards to the two-three months I'll still have to work by the time I go on mat leave. i guess I need to speak to my boss, oh dear, I was hoping to leave it a bit later than now (12 wks) but it sounds as though getting on with it would be a good idea.

Just bumping this back up because I have another question!

I've looked at our maternity policy, and it's changed a lot since 2 years ago. Main change is that you only have to go back for THREE months to get occupational maternity pay, and so long as I start my maternity leave relatively early (36 weeks, I think), then I can do that - I think.

BUT:

• My contract is grant funded. Last time the grant-giving organisation said fine, suspend the grant, and start up again after your leave is over. I'd like to do that again. Is there any way in which they or my employer can change their minds about this second time round? (UK employer, US grant-giver)

• My original contract was fulltime; I'm now working 3/5; is the 3 months calculated on a fulltime or 3/5 basis (I would go back 3/5)

• Is it entirely up to me when my maternity leave starts, especially when it's clearly detrimental to my employer if I start it early?

• When should I tell HR? (my line manager already knows...)

thank you...

If your contract is currently until June 2009 and to return after maternity leave you would require an extension of that contract combined with a third party agreeing to suspend payment of a grant, then you don't have any right to that, you would be relying on goodwill of both parties. If your contract has a specified end date of June 2009 you have no right to any extension. I would expect the terms and conditions of the provision of the grant agreed between your employer and the grant-giver to cover the fact that the grant-giver has no obligation to suspend payment or lengthen period of time involved or anything similar.

Whether the 3 months is calculated on the basis of your original contractual hours or a variation of those will depend on the terms and conditions of the maternity policy, but I would expect it to be on the basis of your current hours, that would be reasonable. Did you not get a contract variation letter when you amended your hours?

It is entirely up to you when to start your maternity leave, unless you are off sick with pg-related illness after 36 weeks in which case your employer can forcibly start it.

Ah, ok, so the previous agreement doesn't create a precedent (she says hopefully!).

Sounds like I need to be extremely nice to everyone I can think of, and wave the correspondence that decided things in my favour last time.

Also sounds like I need to get on with lettin HR etc. know, as they are unbelievably slow (confirmed my mat leave entitlements etc. 2 days before my due date last time...) and it all sounds complicated.

Many thanks for advice, again!

No worries. It does create a precedent, in that they are more likely to agree, and you can demonstrate how marvellously it worked. But it doesn't give you the right to the same arrangement again.

Waving previous correspondence and being extremely nice (as well as committed, hard-working, etc) all good tactics!

Yes let HR know as soon as possible if they have a history of being crap busy...