Taking on paid freelance projects for your own company while on maternity leave. Can I legally do it?

[DungunGirl]

Hello any HR Guru's out there today?

I am due to go on maternity leave in March next year and I already know that I will struggle on the standard SMP. My company doesn't offer any extra benefit just the basic SMP payment and I only get something like the bare minimum of my own pay at the beginning as well...something like 90% salary for the first 8 weeks or something.

So....I wanted to find out if I could offer my boss my services while I was on maternity leave for a little bit of payment to help me pay my mortgage!

I found something on the DWP website that I think says I can do it but I am unsure...HELP? If it is allowed ( without compromising SMP) then I can present it to my boss.

Thanks ladies!

I think you hav ea limited number of staying in touch days (KiT ) which you're paid for

I don't think you can "freelance" for your employer while on paid ML. btw the 90% element is still SMP.

You can work for your existing employer for up to 10 keeping in touch days without affecting your SMP. Payment for those days would be negotiated between employer and employee.

You can technically work on a self-employed basis and still receive SMP from an employer, but working for your current employer who is paying you the SMP would not be self-employed, even if you get them to pay you through your own company or something. The definition of self-employed isn't how you get the money, it's about the relationship between you, and you are their employee.

Sorry, can't be done.

ahhh...so if I were to do some work as 'self-employed' so NOT for my employer that would be ok then?

If I have understood this right then that would be an option as well...

Yes. If you are genuinely self-employed, which if it was for someone else obviously would be more likely.

Have a read here, there's a list of questions towards the end of the page about determining your employment status, to do with control over your work, financial risk and other aspects.

I am allowed to take on freelance projects for other companies under my terms of employment as long as there is not a clash of interests.

So I occassionally take on a little freelance project while working full time for an employer anyway.

So does this make it more clear cut that I could continue to do the odd job for these other companies then? I am not employed by them....but I am not registered officially as self employed either as I probably only do 2 projects a year which amounts to no more than £1200 in payment to myself.

What do you think flowerybeanbag?

If you're not employed by them or registered as self-employed what is it? How is tax paid on those earnings?

I think you could do this as long as you register properly as self-employed and as long as those projects meet the conditions outlined in the link I just posted.

Thanks for all this.

I'll look into the whole self-employed part and see how to proceed from there!

Thanks so much for the advice.