Chance of being pregnant - do I go ahead with it? How do benefits work

tigtag02

I found it:

Can I get it?

To get SMP you must have been:

• Employed by your employer into the qualifying week which is the 15th week before the week your baby is due.
• Employed by the same employer without a break for at least 26 weeks into the 15th week before the week your baby is due. Part weeks count as full weeks, and
• Earning before tax an average of £87.00 a week. This is called the Lower Earnings Limit for National Insurance Contributions (NI) and is the amount you have to earn to qualify for benefits. You have to earn more than this amount before you actually start paying NI.

You need to read the WHOLE of the criteria. The LEL is now £90 but only for babies due after (I think of the top of my head) 20/7/08

daphne_descends

what if you don't know you're pregnabt? sorry tig baby on lap. mat allowance?

tigtag02

fac73 wrote: »

what if you don't know you're pregnabt? sorry tig baby on lap. mat allowance?

Yes, a good point if you dont know you cant tell them. You still wouldnt get SMP although MA is a posibility. I think there are 66 weeks qualification period but I dont know when they run, I'll go look it up.

tigtag02

Here we go:
You might get Maternity Allowance if:

• you're employed, but not eligible for Statutory Maternity Pay
• you're registered self-employed and paying Class 2 National Insurance Contributions (NICs), or hold a Small Earnings Exception certificate
• you have very recently been employed or self-employed

You may be eligible if:

• you've been employed and/or self-employed for at least 26 weeks of the 'test period' (66 weeks up to and including the week before your baby is due). Part weeks count as full weeks; and
• you earned £30 a week averaged over any 13 weeks in your test period

So yes, she could get MA

sarahl1983

I was doing 2 4hour courses in college. I was getting income support whilst i was there.
When i started working my son went to nursery and i got the majority free, but had to pay £20 a month because tax credits paid for most.
I personally decided to not work, i chose not too because the extra money i would of got from working didn't matter to me i could manage on the benefit i was getting, my son never wants for anything he gets all he needs so i thought i'd not work and be able to spend all my time looking after my son and not some people in a nursery.

vaio

fac73 wrote: »

No, it wasn't personal :rolleyes:

If you did that it would be unfair dismissal. Are you not aware of employment law?

If I was, say, 5 weeks pregnant and applied for a job at your 'small business' why would my pregnancy be any of your business? Perhaps I have suffered miscarriages in the past, am scared of it happening again, so don't want to talk about it. Perhaps it was unplanned and perhaps I was not even sure of going ahead with the pregnancy.

Please tell me why this has anything to do with you?

I’m no employment law expert but I don’t see how it would be unfair. I thought I could sack anyone within the first year (or 2?) without giving any reason.

As a prospective employer your pregnancy is my business as much as any other medical condition which could affect your ability to do the job. Training new employees is not a trivial task in time and resources and for anyone to absorb those time and resources knowing she’s going to be off on ML soon WITHOUT telling her employer is a breach of trust and just plain wrong.

There is also the H&S aspect, without knowing the relevant medical history details I can’t be sure that I’m doing all I am required to do to proved a safe working environment.

tigtag02

vaio wrote: »

I’m no employment law expert but I don’t see how it would be unfair. I thought I could sack anyone within the first year (or 2?) without giving any reason.

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

I really do hope that you are NOT an employer.

vaio wrote: »

As a prospective employer your pregnancy is my business as much as any other medical condition which could affect your ability to do the job. Training new employees is not a trivial task in time and resources and for anyone to absorb those time and resources knowing she’s going to be off on ML soon WITHOUT telling her employer is a breach of trust and just plain wrong.

Wrong again ~ you heard of the DDA?

vaio wrote: »

There is also the H&S aspect, without knowing the relevant medical history details I can’t be sure that I’m doing all I am required to do to proved a safe working environment.

H&S holds the onus upon both the employee and the employer ~ if something were to happen which endangered a pregancy that you had not been informed of you could not be held responsible unless the breach covered other areas.

ooobedoo

vaio wrote: »

I’m no employment law expert but I don’t see how it would be unfair. I thought I could sack anyone within the first year (or 2?) without giving any reason.

I hope that you have a nice suit if you do sack somebody if they tell you they are pregnant in their first year, You'll need it when you go to court when they sue you for unfair dismissal.

I hope that when you said small business you man meant a one man ice cream van business that employs just the one man and he is the manager as well as chief ice cream twirler!!!:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

vaio

vaio wrote: »

I’m no employment law expert but I don’t see how it would be unfair. I thought I could sack anyone within the first year (or 2?) without giving any reason.

tigtag02 wrote: »

:rotfl: :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

I really do hope that you are NOT an employer.

Yep, but only a small one, we have a company legal pack and that says that people who have worked for less than a year can be sacked without giving any reason. There is list of exemptions which includes pregnant women. They can still be sacked but have a right to a written statement of the reasons. In the scenario we are talking about the reason would be that they had not told the truth during the recruitment process.

vaio wrote: »

As a prospective employer your pregnancy is my business as much as any other medical condition which could affect your ability to do the job. Training new employees is not a trivial task in time and resources and for anyone to absorb those time and resources knowing she’s going to be off on ML soon WITHOUT telling her employer is a breach of trust and just plain wrong.

tigtag02 wrote: »

Wrong again ~ you heard of the DDA?

Yep, just looked through our legal pack and our sample application form has a section on it which asks if the applicant is disabled, the nature of the disability and if any adjustments need to be made for either interview or job. It also has a medical bit which asks if the applicant has any medical conditions which might affect their ability to perform their duties.

It also has a bit at the end which the applicant signs & dates and which says “I certify that the information in this document is correct to the best of my knowledge and belief. I understand that any untruths render me liable to disqualification or to dismissal, if engaged”

Obviously it is unlawful to discriminate on grounds of disability or pregnancy but that is not the issue. The issue I’m talking about is people not telling the truth on application forms or at interviews. Keep quiet about your pregnancy, epilepsy, colour blindness or missing leg and that’s a lie just like claiming a degree you don’t actually have. Lie and get found out and you can be sacked.

vaio wrote: »

There is also the H&S aspect, without knowing the relevant medical history details I can’t be sure that I’m doing all I am required to do to proved a safe working environment.

tigtag02 wrote: »

H&S holds the onus upon both the employee and the employer ~ if something were to happen which endangered a pregnancy that you had not been informed of you could not be held responsible unless the breach covered other areas.

Also from our legal pack, failure to comply with the company H&S policy (which obviously requires the disclosure of relevant medical details) is a disciplinary offence and could amount to gross misconduct.

daphne_descends

vaio, you're delusional. I am not being mean, I am being honest.


That or your legal pack was written by a comedian.