Maternity leave and holiday entitlement

pinkshoes

I'm confused about maternity leave and holidays, so wondering if anyone can clarify how it works.

I'll be going on maternity leave approximately 1st October.

I get 20 days holiday (and the 8 bank holidays) running from May to April.

So I'll have 5 months from the beginning of May until start of maternity, which includes 3 bank holidays.

I was thinking I ought to take my 20 days holiday in the 5 months before I go on maternity, but what happens to the other 5 bank holidays? I'd normally get paid for them and the day off, so can I then take them as holiday before I go on maternity?

Also, the company has a close down over Christmas, where everyone has to take 3 days (out of their 20). As they won't be paying me my salary on these days, do I take them as holiday instead before I leave?

Or for the 3 Christmas compulsory days and 5 bank holidays, can I ask for my salary instead of taking them as holiday?

:think:

jackomdj

I would say talk to HR or read your HR manual as different places have different policies.

Where I work (back when I was on maternity, it may have changed now) we could take the holiday in advance, but they prefered for us to get paid for it. Bank holidays they would pay us for, we could not take it up front.

pinkshoes

I've not informed work yet, and probably won't until mid-May, so don't want to say anything to HR yet!

They're not too hot on topics like this either, so I thought I'd find out in advance so I can tell them what they're supposed to do!

Being paid the bank holidays would be great!!

milliemonster

I think holiday is only accrued on paid maternity leave, as paid mat leave is 6 months which will take you to end of April, you will be entitled to take your full 28 days prior to commencing mat leave (I would think) although you may not be able to take this as one block before commencing leave. A lot of employers have a stipulation that you can only take up to 2 weeks off in one go for example, you will need to check what your policy states.

If you don't take all the leave you are entitled to, you will just lose the leave, you won't be paid for not taking it.

Once on Mat leave, if you take additional unpaid leave, you don't accrue holidays during this period of unpaid leave, so for instance if you go back to work in June next year, you will 'lose' the bank hols that occurred in May, and would only start accruing annual leave pro rata from June onwards if that makes sense

pinkshoes

milliemonster wrote: »

I think holiday is only accrued on paid maternity leave, as paid mat leave is 6 months which will take you to end of April, you will be entitled to take your full 28 days prior to commencing mat leave (I would think) although you may not be able to take this as one block before commencing leave. A lot of employers have a stipulation that you can only take up to 2 weeks off in one go for example, you will need to check what your policy states.

If you don't take all the leave you are entitled to, you will just lose the leave, you won't be paid for not taking it.

Once on Mat leave, if you take additional unpaid leave, you don't accrue holidays during this period of unpaid leave, so for instance if you go back to work in June next year, you will 'lose' the bank hols that occurred in May, and would only start accruing annual leave pro rata from June onwards if that makes sense

Isn't paid maternity leave 9 months and not 6? i.e. 6 weeks at 90% pay, then 33 weeks at £123 (approx) per week?

I'll make sure I don't lose any holiday!!! If they're not going to pay the bank holidays or Christmas ones, I'll make sure I take them before October!!

milliemonster

It might be 9 months now, I'm not sure, it's been a while since I was on mat leave lol!!!

honeymom

Hi you are entitled To all 28 days for each year that your maternity leave falls So as your Going on Mat leave before in October You can take any remaining Leave (including Bank hols as 28 days is the statutory minimum) you have before you start you Maternity You can ask for this to be paid instead But your Employer doesn't Have to pay you, and they can't make you keep 3 days by if you will be on mat leave Over Christmas shut down.

When you return the next October you will be entitled to Any bank hols you have missed and any accrued Holidays I.e April-Octobers worth

Good luck i've just been through all this with my Employer And Because I returned in Jan i tagged the whole 28 days to the end of my mat leave :d

honeymom

And it doesn't matter how many months you are paid for as you rights are now protected throughout Ordinary leave and additional leave (1 year)

honeymom

milliemonster wrote: »

I think holiday is only accrued on paid maternity leave, as paid mat leave is 6 months which will take you to end of April, you will be entitled to take your full 28 days prior to commencing mat leave (I would think) although you may not be able to take this as one block before commencing leave. A lot of employers have a stipulation that you can only take up to 2 weeks off in one go for example, you will need to check what your policy states.

If you don't take all the leave you are entitled to, you will just lose the leave, you won't be paid for not taking it.

Once on Mat leave, if you take additional unpaid leave, you don't accrue holidays during this period of unpaid leave, so for instance if you go back to work in June next year, you will 'lose' the bank hols that occurred in May, and would only start accruing annual leave pro rata from June onwards if that makes sense

The rules on that Changed In October 2008

pinkshoes

honeymom wrote: »

Hi you are entitled To all 28 days for each year that your maternity leave falls So as your Going on Mat leave before in October You can take any remaining Leave (including Bank hols as 28 days is the statutory minimum) you have before you start you Maternity You can ask for this to be paid instead But your Employer doesn't Have to pay you, and they can't make you keep 3 days by if you will be on mat leave Over Christmas shut down.

When you return the next October you will be entitled to Any bank hols you have missed and any accrued Holidays I.e April-Octobers worth

Good luck i've just been through all this with my Employer And Because I returned in Jan i tagged the whole 28 days to the end of my mat leave :d

yaaaaaaay!

So if someone were to go on maternity in mid May (using holiday period as above), then that's only 2 weeks into the holiday year, and if they took the full year, they wouldn't come back until the holiday year had finished. It would be physically impossible to take all 28 days before leaving, so would they have to pay you in this situation?

The company I work for are very old fashioned and somewhat evil over employee rights, so it's always good to know these things in advance and prepare myself.

Debt_Free_Chick

pinkshoes wrote: »

yaaaaaaay!

So if someone were to go on maternity in mid May (using holiday period as above), then that's only 2 weeks into the holiday year, and if they took the full year, they wouldn't come back until the holiday year had finished. It would be physically impossible to take all 28 days before leaving, so would they have to pay you in this situation?

No they don't have to pay you - they can ask you to take all the outstanding accrued holiday immediately after your maternity leave, effectively extending the date on which you return to work.