Managing Maternity – Commonly asked Questions

Written by Andrew Johnson, Founder and CEO HRGuide - Thu 24th Oct 2024

Common Questions about statutory maternity pay

Q. How do I manage disputes about statutory maternity pay or if I can’t pay it?

A. Call the HMRC helpline - You can call the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) helpline if:

  • you and someone else disagree about how much statutory maternity pay they should get, or for how long.
  • you cannot pay it, for example because you're insolvent.

Q. What rights do agency workers have?

A. Find out more about employment rights for agency workers by downloading our HR How to Guide on Agency Workers

Q. When is a pregnant employee protected from discrimination?

A. By law, an employee is protected against discrimination from the start of their pregnancy until they either:

  • end maternity leave.
  • return to work.
  • leave their job.

The employee is protected against discrimination resulting from:

  • their pregnancy
  • illness related to their pregnancy, including related absence they take or plan to take.
  • maternity pay they take or plan to take.
  • the employer not wanting them to return to work because they’re breastfeeding.

Q. What do I do if the pregnant employee is ill or having a difficult pregnancy?

A. If an employee cannot come to work because of a pregnancy-related illness, they should:

  • report in sick in the usual way.
  • get their usual sick pay.

Pregnancy-related illness can include:

  • morning sickness (nausea and vomiting)
  • tiredness
  • headache
  • backache
  • bleeding

If you're not sure whether an illness is pregnancy-related, you can ask your employee to provide a fit note from a registered healthcare professional.

BEST PRACTICE - It's a good idea to:

  • take the employee's wellbeing seriously, particularly if there are any known health and safety risks – you could also be breaking discrimination law if you do not allow them the time off.
  • be as flexible as you can about the amount of sick leave they take – pregnancy-related illnesses affect people differently.

Q. What records should I keep in relation to pregnancy-related absence?

A. You should record pregnancy-related absence separately from other sickness absence. You should not count these absences towards any review or trigger points in your absence policy. If the employee is off work because of a pregnancy-related illness within 4 weeks of the due date, maternity leave begins automatically. This is unless you and the employee agree together to delay it (for example, for health and safety reasons). Once maternity leave starts, you must pay them maternity pay instead of sick pay.

Q. What do I do if my employee is having a difficult pregnancy?

A. It's a good idea to be understanding towards an employee who's having physical or mental health difficulties when pregnant. For example, consider offering:

  • different work start and finish times.
  • working from home and extra breaks
  • an occupational health assessment, for example to look at whether a chair can be adjusted for someone with back pain.
  • If they need long-term changes to how they work, flexible working might be a good idea.

Q. What pregnancy-related appointments should I accommodate?

A. Pregnant employees are entitled to time off with full pay for 'antenatal' (pregnancy-related) appointments.

Antenatal appointments include:

  • medical appointments related to a pregnancy.
  • classes for pregnancy-related health, fitness or relaxation
  • sessions that support the person's mental health and wellbeing
  • Paid time off for antenatal appointments includes travel time.

Q. How much notice should an employee give me for time off work?

A. The law does not say how much time can be taken off, only that it must be a 'reasonable' amount.

Usually, a pregnant employee needs:

  • up to 10 antenatal appointments if it's their first baby
  • around 7 antenatal appointments if they've had a baby before

As every pregnancy is different, it's a good idea to be flexible and understanding if an employee needs more appointments. After the first appointment, they must provide an appointment card or other evidence of their appointments if you ask for it.

Q. What if the employee is adopting?

A. By law the main adopter is entitled to paid time off for up to 5 adoption appointments, the secondary adopter is entitled to take unpaid time off for up to 2 appointments. Some employment contracts may allow for more, or paid, time off for these appointments. Find out more about rights for employees using adoption by downloading our HR How to Guide – Managing Adoption

Q. What if the employee is using surrogacy?

A. Unless your contract says otherwise, an employee can take unpaid time off for 2 antenatal appointments if they're using surrogacy and will become the child's legal parent once it's born.

Q. What if my employee is having IVF treatment?

A. There's no legal right for time off work for IVF treatment or related sickness. But you should treat an employee's IVF appointments and any sickness the same as any other medical appointment or sickness. Check your employment contract if you're not sure.

It's a good idea to be open to any requests your employee has for:

  • flexible working
  • paid time off, unpaid time off or holiday.