Checklist for leaders thumbnail

Maternity leave and pay checklist for leaders

Use the checklist and NEU model policies to guide line managers in supporting pregnant women and new mothers through maternity leave planning, taking time off, and returning to work.

 

 


 

Published:
Download

Education staff are predominantly women and yet there are systemic disadvantages that women experience in the workplace including lack of flexibility and low rates of maternity pay which is contributing to the education profession losing excellent female educators.

The NEU maternity rights survey in 2022 revealed that many women were denied their rights to maternity leave or maternity pay or to return to their job. Others reported that they were marginalised as soon as they indicated their intention to take maternity leave. Many reported that they could not plan financially as they were not provided with a timely forecast of their maternity pay. We found that 70 per cent of respondents’ employers did not discuss what reasonable contact should take place during maternity leave, leaving new mothers ignorant of changes or opportunities at work. And 20 per cent reported that they qualified for pay progression but didn’t receive it because they were on maternity leave.

We want to see an end to discriminatory and unlawful practices that devalue educators and damage education. The NEU’s aim is to support and assist heads, principals and employers to enable teachers and support staff to take leave from work to have a baby and return to their jobs without aggravation, inequity or discrimination.

You can use this checklist and the NEU model policy as tools to lead line managers to support pregnant women and new mothers in your school or college as they plan their maternity leave, take time off to have their baby and as they prepare to return to work. Creating a positive culture around taking maternity leave will go a long way to helping you to retain your staff.

What can you do?

 Be prepared

❱ Let your staff know that you and your leadership team support and value pregnant women and new mothers at work and ensure that their maternity rights are upheld. You can access the full range of NEU resources on supporting pregnant women at work, maternity leave and pay and flexible working on our website.

❱ Display the NEU’s Maternity leave and pay poster in your workplace.

❱ Read the NEU model policy on maternity leave and pay. Changes can be made to the policy through negotiation; you can use the process set out in the trade union recognition agreement if you have one or discuss this with your NEU rep if you don’t.

❱ Share the model with your SLT and discuss the benefits of having such a policy in place: raising awareness, valuing new parents, encouraging communication and retaining valued staff. Talk about how to avoid discrimination on grounds of maternity leave.

❱ Insert the school/college name in the maternity policy and make sure it is included in the employee handbook or equivalent.

❱ Use this checklist to develop maternity leave support plans into your management practices. You can adopt processes in line with the model policy to make sure that pregnant women and new mothers on your staff are informed, valued, included and rewarded.

❱ Make sure that your school, college, local authority or trust monitors and reviews working practices and decisions, including pay and promotion decisions, to ensure that women who take maternity leave are treated with dignity, respect and fairness. Check that they are not subjected to harassment or any other detriment or disadvantage on grounds of sex, pregnancy, maternity or any other protected characteristic.

❱ Share any pay progression data and non- confidential equality monitoring data with the recognised trade unions.

❱ Familiarise yourself with the pregnancy, maternity and return-to-work policies that apply in your school or college and clarify who is responsible for administering each element of maternity leave and pay.

❱ Consider developing a template maternity leave support plan to make sure that all staff with management responsibilities take appropriate steps when a member of staff takes leave.

❱ Establish arrangements to support women returning to work from maternity leave, including return to work inductions, and follow our guidance on flexible working.

Before a woman starts her maternity leave

❱ Let her know who manages maternity leave and pay and make sure that she has a copy of the maternity leave and pay policy or scheme that applies to her. Follow the NEU guidance on maternity leave and pay and seek advice from your human resources (HR) provider if you are unsure about any aspect of maternity rights.

❱ Make sure that any pregnancy-related absences are recorded separately and are not used to deny pay progression or career opportunities.

❱ Discuss and agree reasonable contact during maternity leave as part of your maternity leave support plan. Confirm how your member of staff would prefer to be contacted, eg by personal email. Agree the purpose of contact during her absence, including information about vacancies, reorganisations, changes in staff and return-to- work plans. A pregnant woman or new mother must not work during her maternity leave unless she has agreed to work a KIT day.

During a woman’s maternity leave

❱ Recognise that statutory maternity pay is very low and that prospective parents will often plan their child-related absences carefully to counter the high costs and low pay involved in raising a family. Ensure that women are not penalised for exercising their statutory or contractual rights.

❱ Make sure that all pay increases are applied automatically to women absent on maternity leave. They must receive the benefit of any pay rise that they would have received had they not been pregnant or on maternity leave. This applies to any increase in pay, such as performance- related pay, an annual cost of living increase and any other increase due to a pay increment, promotion or re-grading. Make sure any delayed pay awards are backdated correctly.

❱ Following any pay increase during maternity leave, arrange for a revised breakdown, forecast and pay adjustment to be sent to women absent on maternity leave.

❱ Make sure that each woman on maternity leave is informed at the same time as other staff of all vacancies or promotion opportunities that arise during her absence.

❱ Consult staff who are absent on maternity leave on any reorganisation plans, timetabling proposals or other anticipated changes. Be aware that pregnant women and women on maternity leave must be treated more favourably than other employees in a redundancy exercise: if their job is at risk of redundancy, they must be given first refusal on suitable alternative vacancies if there are any.

❱ Be aware that many Black and Asian women, as well as some women from Muslim communities and Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities, will not be receiving appropriate individualised or culturally sensitive maternity care while they are on leave. This can impact on their physical and mental health. You can offer appropriate support and ask about what workplace procedures might need adjustment before they return to ensure that all women feel supported and valued by their employer.

❱ In the tragic circumstances that a member of staff loses her baby, follow our guidance on pregnancy loss and termination. You’ll find a summary of what steps to take in what circumstances and links to external organisations which can provide specialist advice.

Before the end of a woman’s maternity leave

❱ Discuss and agree the woman’s return-to-work plans.

❱ Remind your staff about the keeping in touch (KIT) days, acknowledge the benefits of using KIT days as return-to-work inductions and ensure any days attended are paid in full.

❱ Recognise the benefits of retaining experienced, committed members of staff and strive to respond positively and quickly to any requests for flexible working.

❱ Plan for risk assessments and suitable arrangements to support women who have given birth within the past six months and mothers who are breastfeeding.

Maternity leave and pay model policy

The aim of this model policy on maternity rights is to ensure that all teachers and support staff are aware of their statutory and contractual and that they are treated fairly and consistently in accordance with relevant legislation.

Maternity leave and pay

Maternity leave and pay for teachers and support staff– your rights, how to exercise them and how members and reps can work together to improve pay and working conditions for pregnant women and new mothers in schools and colleges.

Back to top