Maternity leave and maternity pay

Laura Merrylees Editor's message: With women constituting around half of the UK workforce, and the majority becoming pregnant at some point during their working life, most employers will need to manage employees through the transition from pregnancy to maternity leave, and then back to work, on a regular basis.

Regardless of length of service, all pregnant employees are entitled to a year's statutory maternity leave. However, entitlement to statutory maternity pay is limited to those with at least 26 weeks' service into the qualifying week and average weekly earnings of at least the lower earnings limit for national insurance purposes. Statutory maternity pay is payable for 39 weeks - six weeks at 90% of the employee's average earnings, followed by the remainder at a lower flat rate. However, many organisations choose to offer enhanced maternity pay above the statutory minimum, viewing this as a key way of improving the maternity experience for employees, and ensuring that the organisation retains their skills and experience in the longer term.

Laura Merrylees, employment law editor

New and updated

Date:

19 May 2021

Type:

Commentary and analysis

Pregnancy loss: Supporting employees affected by termination for medical reasons

Pregnancy loss charities have welcomed recent initiatives by some employers to offer paid time off to employees affected by miscarriage or stillbirth. One form of pregnancy loss that is rarely talked about, however, is termination for medical reasons. Jane Fisher takes us through the specific difficulties that can arise and how employers can help.
Date:

6 May 2021

Type:

Survey analysis

Maternity leave and pay: XpertHR survey 2021

Our research finds that although a majority of organisations enhance maternity pay above the statutory provision, they take a wide range of approaches in doing so.
Type:

How to

How to deal with maternity pay, salary sacrifice and childcare vouchers

Updated to reflect the increase to the statutory maternity pay rate from 4 April 2021.
Type:

How to

How to deal with keeping-in-touch days during maternity leave

Updated to reflect the increase to the statutory maternity pay rate from 4 April 2021.
Type:

Statutory rates

Maternity allowance

Updated to reflect the maternity allowance rate in force from 4 April 2021.
Type:

Statutory rates

Statutory maternity pay

Updated to reflect the statutory maternity pay rate in force from 4 April 2021.
Type:

Quick reference

Statutory maternity pay (SMP)

Updated to reflect the statutory maternity pay rate in force from 4 April 2021.
Type:

Line manager briefings

Maternity leave and pay

Updated to include the increase in statutory maternity pay in force from 4 April 2021.
Type:

Liveflo

Pregnancy and maternity: Manage an employee's maternity leave and pay

Use this pregnancy and maternity workflow when an employee informs you that they are pregnant.
Type:

Policies and documents

Maternity policy

Updated to include the new rate of statutory maternity pay for 2021/22.

About this topic

HR and legal information and guidance relating to maternity leave and maternity pay.