Commencement of maternity leave periods

The commencement dates for an employee's maternity leave period vary depending on a number of factors. The dates are as follows:

Liveflo provides a calculator enabling you to determine the earliest date on which the employee can start her maternity leave. The calculator is available along with four other calculators on the Maternity leave and pay workflow. 

An employee whose maternity leave commences because childbirth occurs prematurely or because of absence for a pregnancy-related reason must inform her employer, as soon as reasonably practicable, that she has given birth and of the date on which the birth occurred or of her absence for a pregnancy-related reason and the date on which it began. XpertHR provides answers to FAQs on maternity leave start dates:

• Where an employee plans to start her maternity leave on the day that her baby is due can she postpone her start date if the baby does not arrive on time?
• Where an employee wishes to start her maternity leave on her due date, can the employer insist that she start it earlier so that she has some time to relax beforehand?
• Where a pregnant employee's job involves heavy lifting and there is no lighter work available for her to do can the employer insist that she start her maternity leave early?
• Where a pregnant employee is suspended on health and safety grounds will this trigger her maternity leave at a certain point?
• Where an employee takes annual leave prior to her maternity leave, but gives birth early, will her maternity leave still start after the period of annual leave?