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Your employment terms and conditions

If your baby was due on or after 5 October 2008, you keep your normal employment rights and benefits (apart from wages) throughout your Ordinary and Additional Maternity Leave. This might include any access to a company car or mobile phone that you have as part of your employment contract. Some contractual benefits which are provided for business use only can be suspended, eg a mobile phone or access to a pool car.

If your baby as due before 5 October 2008, some of your contractual rights and benefits can be suspended during any Additional Maternity Leave. Your statutory employment rights will continue.

Pension contributions

If your employer contributes to an occupational pension scheme, they must carry on making their usual contributions:

• for the whole time you are on Ordinary Maternity Leave
• or for any time you are receiving any Statutory Maternity Pay or contractual maternity pay

If you normally make contributions to your pension you should carry on doing so, based on the amount of maternity pay that you are getting.

Holiday entitlement

If your baby was due on or after 5 October 2008 you will build up all your entitlements to paid holiday throughout your Ordinary and Additional Maternity leave. This is even if your contract says you are entitled to more than the statutory minimum.

You can add holiday to the beginning or end of your maternity leave. You may not be able to carry over untaken holiday entitlement if your maternity leave goes over two holiday years, so it's often best to take this at the beginning of your leave.

For babies due before 5 October 2008 you can still build up your contractual holiday entitlement during your Ordinary Maternity Leave. During any Additional Maternity Leave you can only build up your statutory minimum holiday entitlement.

Redundancy or dismissal

It is automatically unfair and automatic sex discrimination for your employer to select you for redundancy or dismiss you for a reason connected with:

• maternity leave
• birth or pregnancy
• paternity leave
• parental or dependants leave

Your employer can make you redundant while you are on maternity leave if they can fairly justify their choice. For example, if your employer is closing a section of their business that you normally work in and making all employees in that section redundant, your employer can make you redundant as well. However, if your employer needed to make staff cuts across the company, they cannot make you redundant because you are on or about to go on maternity leave.

If you are made redundant whilst on maternity leave then you have special rights. You have the right to be offered any suitable alternative job in the company. This is even if there are other employees that might be more suitable for the job. If you are offered a new job, then you are still entitled to the four-week trial period, which should start when you return from maternity leave.
 
If you are made redundant or dismissed during your maternity leave your employer must give you a written statement explaining their reasons for the decision. You should also receive your normal notice period or pay in lieu of notice and redundancy payment, if you are entitled to receive them.

• Redundancy: new employment (employment section)

• Redundancy (employment section)

Keeping in touch

During your leave it is often helpful to keep in touch with your employer. Your employer is also entitled to make reasonable contact with you during maternity leave. This might be to update you on any significant changes in the workplace while you have been away, including any opportunities for promotion or job vacancies.

Your maternity leave and pay will normally come to an end when you return to work. However, you are entitled to do up to ten days work during your maternity leave without losing Statutory Maternity Pay (or Maternity Allowance if you are getting this instead) or bringing your leave to an end.

These 'keeping in touch days' may only be worked if both you and your employer agree. You cannot work during compulsory maternity leave which is the two weeks immediately after your child is born. Although particularly useful for things such as training or team events, keeping in touch days may be used for any form of work. They should make it easier for you to return to work after your leave.

You will need to agree with your employer what work is to be done on keeping in touch days and how much pay you will receive.

Becoming pregnant again during maternity leave

If you become pregnant again during maternity leave, you have the right to further Ordinary and Additional Maternity Leave.

• Maternity leave

• Parental leave

Where to get help

If you are being denied your rights, talk to your employer first of all. If you have an employee representative, such as a trade union official, they may be able to help. If this doesn't work, you may need to make a complaint using your employer's internal grievance procedure.

For more information on where to get help with employment issues visit the employment contacts page. If you are a member of a trade union they can also provide advice or support.

• How to resolve a problem at work (employment section)

• Employment contacts

• Introduction to trade unions (employment section)