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Browse frequently asked questions and answers on key HR issues. Navigate by topic or key word search. View latest additions or suggest a question to the XpertHR editorial team.
If an employee whose probation period has been extended due to poor performance announces that she is pregnant will the employer be obliged to confirm her in the post? Where a job applicant is currently on maternity leave and would not wish to start the new role until the end of her maternity leave can the potential employer reject her application for this reason? Where a suitably qualified employee who is about to go on maternity leave wishes to apply for an internal vacancy must she be considered for the position even though she may not be able to start the new job for a year? What is the minimum provision for maternity leave? Where an employee is expecting twins, will she be entitled to two lots of maternity leave? Apart from the right to statutory maternity leave what other statutory rights do pregnant women and new mothers have? What rights do employees have in relation to time off work for antenatal care? Can an employer insist that a part-time employee arrange all her antenatal appointments for times when she is not working? How is "expected week of childbirth" defined?
An employee must notify her employer that she is pregnant, of her expected week of childbirth (EWC) and of the date on which she wishes to start her maternity leave. The employee must provide this information by the end of the 15th week before her EWC. She has the right to change her mind about the date on which she wants her maternity leave to begin, but must notify her employer of the revised start date at least 28 days before the day in question.
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