Employers qualifiying period for paid maternity pay - negotiable?

[goldenoldie]

I recently changed jobs, from one public sector organisation to another.

I now find I am pregnant (great) but reading the personnel booklet I see that I won't qualify for the paid maternity leave (apart from SMP - which is nothing) becuse I won't have been there long enough.

I am a bit miffed - after all, I am still in the public sector - are these polices negotiable? Has anyone tried to negotiate a better maternity deal for themselves in the public sector?

It's worth speaking to your HR department but I wouldn't have thought this is negotiable, no.

I;m in similar situation, not v hopeful but may depend on which organisations you're talking about and whether you could in any way argue continuity of service. It's probably worth contacting the maternity alliance helpline to speak to an adviser direct (nb - v limited hours and when you do get thro will be on hold for a long time - v helpful though). Helpline: 020 7490 7638 - their helpline has tons of info on line and will also tell you when advisors next available.
also www.tiger.gov.uk is helpful for working out yr eligibility, calendars etc.

Yes, my partner was in this situation and did get full maternity benefits, but it was basically at the whim of the employer who decided to be nice to her. We didn't know she was going to get it until about a month before dd1 was born. So it is negotiable, but they don't have to negotiate. Hope you manage to get yours.