maternity leave

[sum2401]

hi guy,

i have only recently found out i am pregnant and due in December 2009!

i am currently working and trying to find out when the earliest i can leave work and start my maternity lave/pay?

everywhere i look says i have to let me employer know by the 15th week before i am due and take my leave after the 11th week i am due.

what if i want to take it earlier?
i am already feeling very sick all the time and extremely tired-so not sure i can cope. but don't want to hand in my notice as i want my leave and pay!

any advice? i can't seem to find anythign helpful on directgov and don't know anyone who has been through the same situation.

i do not intend to return to work after the baby.

help please!

thank you!

 

[aimee-lou]

If you go to the Home Life and relationships section on here there is a section on rights etc. It's really useful.

Hope this helps and congratulations on the pregnancy! x

 

[first alien]

you cant take maternity pay until the 11th week before your due date. The only way to leave earlier is with a doctors note due to illness but then you will be on sick pay not maternity pay

 

[LuluBee]

i was on sick leave from 20 weeks because i was on bed rest. as first alien says you can be signed off sick if needed before 29 weeks and be on whatever sick pay you are entitled to. but don't worry too much the first 12 weeks or so are the hardest with morning sickness and fatigue i remember thinking it was a miracle i was even in work let alone ding anything once i was there, you should feel better in a few weeks and be more able to cope

 

[PrettyBonk]

Yep... with my second pregnancy...I had to quit my job because I was so sick (I waited till I was 12 weeks to see if my symptoms would go but never did...I was sick the whole 9 months)...doc wouldnt give me a note because as they say "its not an illness" its pregnancy symptoms and my pregnancy was ok...
and like the others said you cant collect your maternity leave before...you could probably collect your sick pay before.

And yes the firlst 12 weeks are the worse...I'm on my 12 weeks and my symptoms are starting to go away!!!!

 

[Raven24]

why not try and wait it out and take your holiday right before your maternity leave should start that way you can finisdh work a little earlier thats my plan

 

[Nickij]

I don't think you can take you maternity leave any earlier. Hopefully though once the first trimester passes you will feel alot better and may feel you can carry on working up until you are able to take maternity. Try and save up your holiday too and you could add this to be the beginning of your leave. x x

 

[MsEmski]

It might be worth thinking about the leave that you're going to accrue whilst you're off on maternity leave. If you have a good employer, they'll probably let you take it before you go off on Mat leave. I only work part-time but have been taking an extra day off every other week to help with the tiredness. You also cannot be fired etc for being pregnant, don't be scared to phone in sick if you have to.

 

[Seraphim]

Echoing all the good comments above

One question though... if you don't intend to return to your job... do you still get maternity pay? Statutory or Employers?

 

[Buffy71]

You still get statutory pay whether or not you intend to return. Any additional contractual maternity pay is a different kettle of fish and you should check your staff hand book as while you do not have to inform your employer of your intention to return(or not) to work until the end of your 12 months off, there may be a requirement to pay back some or all of the contractual maternity pay. The statutory pay is yours regardless. One more thing You need to factor in is when resigning at the end of your maternity leave, you need to give your required notice before the end of mat leave. Xxx

 

[Mynx]

I have about 3 weeks of holiday now that were previously booked for towards the end of this year and the beginning of next year and I'm seriously thinking about using it up just before I go on Mat leave so I can extend it a little. I work full time and I dont think I'm gonna be able to cope with the hours when I'm waddling as my job involves ALOT of walking. So I'll either take it all in one go and be able to leave earlier or take a couple of days every week so I can cut down my hours because I dont wanna lose the amount of Mat pay that I get, hence not cutting down my hours properly. Gonna see how I feel and I need to speak to HR dept.

 

[aimee-lou]

I've been researching holiday etc and you are entitled to take all of your annual leave either before you go on Maternity or to extend it (slightly different for me as I'm on fixed term so I don't know precisely how much i'm entitled to) personally I would rather leave earlier than work less hours but that's just me.