Maternity Leave Policies

Hi all,

I was wondering if a few of you would mind sharing your company's maternity leave policy?

Essentially, a few of our employees have mentioned that our organisation's maternity pay is not all that generous, despite it being the better out of the three companies I am currently reviewing (the other two are our parent companies, and somewhat smaller than us). We are a company of around 80 employees.

At the moment, our maternity pay depends on how long an employee has worked for us:

Under 1 year - 6 weeks @ 90%, then 33 weeks @ SMP

1-2 years - 6 weeks @ 90%, then 2 weeks @ 50%, then 31 weeks @ SMP

Over 2 years - 6 weeks @ 90%, 4 weeks @ 50%, 29 weeks @ SMP. Plus 2 week’s full pay after 6 months of returning.

Any guidance you could give would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

Kate

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Replies

  • Hi,

    Just initially picking up on Claire's comment/question below, I feel it is an attraction to prospective employees to have a good maternity package. I think this shows the employer to be interested in the employees personal life and not just their working life.

    In terms of the package, we share a building with a Society who pay 100% wage for 12 months. We however don't do that, we pay the standard 90% of weekly earnings for the first 6 weeks of maternity leave and then the remaining 33 weeks at SMP as per Government prescription. I don't feel our package is as attractive as other companies, however we have other benefits which balance it all out.

    Not sure if this is of any use, but I hope it helps.

    Debbie

  • Hi Kate

    I was the first person to have a baby in my company so there was nothing in place and no H.R. department to advise.  I was basically ignored until I was 7.5 months pregnant, whereupon my friend who is an H.R. Manager drafted a letter to them and they had 5 days to respond to it.  They then panicked and said they would pay me 100% of my wages for 9 months, which they are now regretting as since then 4 people have had children and we are only a company of 27 employees (20 of whom are woman of childbearing age).

    Lucy

  • Hi Clare,

    I would agree that a good maternity package is a definite attraction for certain employees. Essentially the reason the organisation I work for are looking into this is because we have been approached by an increasing number of colleagues whom this will be an issue for in the not-too-distant future, so it is clearly something they will engage with. We've also had positive feedback regarding our bonus payment which occurs 6 months after the return of a maternity leaver.

    Hope this helps!

    Kate

  • Hi All

    Well this is very interesting for me as I work in a company that is about 40, and i have my very first Maternity issue to deal with.So all this info is greatly appreciated.

    We don't have a policy in place as such, so hearing all your policies is great.Clare i do think a good maternity package is a good attraction for employees as well as it is a worry on people and a lot of organising financial for them.

    Thanks

    Karin

    Thanks

  • Hi All,

    I am reading this with interest and wonder if anyone has any views on whether offering Maternity pay has any impact on attracting people into the organisation or retaining them after their maternity leave is completed?

    We currently only offer SMP but it is something that I would like us to look into for the future to offer some kind of package.

    Thanks

    Clare

  • Thanks Elizabeth! :)

  • Hi Kate

    We offer the following maternity pay:

    For employees with 26 plus weeks' service by the 15th week before EWC we pay:

    first 6 weeks - 100% 

    6- 33 weeks - a flat £150 plus statutory

    We are a global company but have around 120 UK employees

     

    Hope that helps

     

    Elizabeth

     

     

     

  • Hi Denise,

    Thanks so much for sharing! :)

    Kate

  • Hi Kate,

    Our organisation gives anyone with 1-year continuous service (up to the end of the fifteenth week before the week the baby is due) Childrensalon Maternity Pay. We offer full salary for 3-months after the baby is due (inclusive of SMP) and after that basic SMP. Anyone not here for the 1 year gets basic SMP. 

    We have 150+ employees and have found that on-average we have 2-3 people out per year on maternity leave, so the cost is not huge when you look at it, and it really is a nice thing for employee retention/ morale. 

    Thanks!

    Denise Hamilton

    Best regards,

    Denise Hamilton

  • Thanks Katrina, that's really helpful!

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