Maternity rights and benefits

[amimissingsomething]

I've namechanged for this because I suspect some of my work colleagues are mumsnetters and this has been a hot topic at work, as a few of us are pregnant.

We've been told that our monthly car allowance will not continue in the unpaid part of our maternity leave. I understood that this had changed following the change to the legislation, or have I got that wrong?

I'd also indicated an interest in the keep in touch days, and thought that these would be paid. We've been told that we can only have time off in lieu when we return to work. Is this right? What if I'd prefer the money instead? What if I don't want to go back to work?

I'd like to get my facts straight before I challenge this, as things are a bit rocky anyway. Thanks!

ooh i don't know about car allowances, sorry...

afaik the keep-in-touch days would mess up your maternity pay as you are not allowed to be paid mat pay in any week that you're paid for work. Thus getting lieu time is the most effective way of reimbursing you. If you don't go back then presumably they will make some arrangement about converting it to paid leave at the end of your mat leave, but that may need to be negotiated.

anything here to help?

Thanks, I'll have a look. But I'd only get maternity pay for 9 months, I thought the keep in touch days could be used in months 10, 11 and 12 as an induction back into work and give me some extra cash.

The keep-in-touch days arrangement seems quite good since the legislation says you should e paid, but that this is deducted from your SMP, so you may not benefit financially iykwim.

no idea about car allowances.

x-posts

AFAIK. All benefits (including pay, car allowance etc) cease after 9 months. Unless your employer is providing maternity pay and benefits above and beyond Stat.

KIT days are agreed between the employer and employee. There is no right on either side to these. Not sure about the time off in lieu thing but I know that an employee can work ten KIT days before SMP is affected.

there's some really helpful stuff on this site

The recent change for babies due from October 2008 was to ensure that mothers are now entitled to benefits throughout their maternity leave, rather than just in Ordinary Maternity Leave.

However you are not entitled to remuneration during maternity leave, and it's not clear at the moment as a matter of law whether cash benefits like car allowances are remuneration. I think at the moment the most recent case indicates that car allowances are considered remuneration and therefore not payable during maternity leave, but it's still up for debate AFAIK.

However, you have an excellent argument for three reasons.

Firstly, (assuming this car allowance is given as an alternative to a company car) you would be entitled to a company car throughout maternity leave, therefore you'd argue that you should similarly be entitled to the car allowance throughout maternity leave.

Secondly you have the moral argument that the car allowance is (presumably) funding some sort of car loan or lease, an obligation which you cannot get out of just because you are on maternity leave.

Thirdly you also have the excellent argument that your employer has clearly indicated that it views your car allowance as a benefit, not as remuneration, as evidenced by the fact that they have continued to pay it during Ordinary Maternity Leave, which they would not have done had they considered it to be salary.

Those arguments are dependent on the fact that your baby was due after 5th October this year, although you could still argue the second point regardless.

In terms of KIT days, these are not a legal entitlement, they are a tool to be used with the agreement of employer and employee. If you wish to use them and your employer agrees, then fine. Payment for them isn't automatically your normal salary payment, it would often involve a top up of SMP.

But if your employer doesn't find it convenient to have you back, they don't have to allow them. I'm not sure what this time in lieu is, that seems bizarre. Either you are using the KIT days for the purposes they were intended or you are not, time in lieu is not either a requirement or sensible. You will have accrued bags of holiday during maternity leave anyway so I'm not sure how giving you extra paid days off is a good idea.