That is the start of the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth. Eligible mothers can swap their maternity pay for shared parental pay. Any repayment conditions must be agreed before the start of the leave and you should check your contract or employer’s policy for details of any repayment conditions. If the mother returns to work before giving notice to take SPL/ ShPP she must give at least 8 weeks’ notice to curtail the maternity pay period before the end of the 38th week. If the mother returns to work earlier than the date given in the Curtailment Notice, you cannot create any more ShPP. You are strongly advised to get personal legal advice about the individual circumstances of your case. Paid Family and Medical Leave is a new benefit for Washington workers, and lets you take up to 12 weeks of paid time off when you need it most. There is a possibility that an employer may offer more. The parent who is taking SPL/ShPP must be employed up to the start of the week in which the SPL/ShPP starts. If your employer pays contractual sick pay i.e. Shared parental leave/ pay can only be created by the mother reducing her maternity leave/pay e.g. www.gov.uk/recover-statutory-payments/if-you-cant-afford-to-make-payments, Fatherhood and work: pay bonus, family time deficit. For example, if the father is taking shared parental leave and pay, his employer can ask the mother’s employer if the information in her declaration is correct i.e. You can receive ShPP whilst doing self-employed work or work for which you are not liable to pay Class 1 national insurance contributions. You do not have to repay ShPP if you do not return to work. You are also entitled to your contractual benefits (apart from your normal salary) during SPL. You can work for up to 20 ‘shared parental leave in touch days’ during your leave with each of your employers. You cannot withdraw your notice to curtail your MA period, except in very limited circumstances, see above. b. If you booked SPL or ShPP to start after eight weeks after the birth, you must give a variation notice to make any changes to leave starting eight weeks after the birth, even if the baby is born prematurely. If your employment or relationship is uncertain or your partner may not be able to take shared parental leave once it’s booked, it may be better to wait before giving notice to reduce your maternity leave/pay. All employers can claim back 92% of ShPP (103% for small employers) from HM Revenue and Customs. The new contract must be suitable and appropriate for you and must be on similar terms and conditions to your old job. The option of taking shared parental leave and pay will not suit all families and it will depend on your circumstances. For example, if you go back to work one day a week, you should only lose 1/7th of your MA for those weeks. Any SMP or MA you received after you returned to work as a result of sickness during the maternity pay period will not reduce the number of weeks of SPL and/or ShPP available to you and your partner, as the number of weeks of SMP or MA taken for the purpose of ShPP is determined from the date of your return to work. Introduction. You only need to add leave you have taken, not periods of leave taken by your partner. The mother can stay on maternity leave/SMP if she wishes or she can curtail (reduce) her maternity leave/SMP to create SPL/ShPP for her or the father/ partner to take. If she cannot get SMP, she must claim Maternity Allowance and then reduce it to create SPL/ShPP for her partner. Both parents must give their written consent to the variation. If you want to take more leave you can take SPL. This may be through a contract of employment, enterprise agreement or a workplace policy. In June 2018, Massachusetts became the sixth state to have a paid family leave law on the books. Providing you are still within your 39 week MA period, you can contact JobCentre Plus and ask to be paid MA if you take shared parental leave to care for your baby. : How to work out the 15th week before the baby is due Her employer triggered her maternity leave and pay on the following day. Agency workers, casual workers, zero hours contract workers and some freelance workers can qualify for ShPP if they are classed as ‘employed earners’ and meet the conditions above. They should both agree before the employee goes on leave how and when they’ll stay in touch, for example they might decide to use keeping in touch days (‘SPLIT’ days). Can I ask to work part-time after taking SPL? If you go back to work for 4 weeks, you are entitled to MA for the first 2 weeks (10 days) and you may be disqualified from receiving MA for the last 2 weeks. does the mother want to reduce her maternity leave/pay period? Working parents may both want to take unpaid parental leave. Her partner is still entitled to take the 4 weeks’ SPL/ShPP as Emily had curtailed her maternity leave/SMP by 4 weeks. up to 37 weeks of Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) How much SPL or ShPP eligible parents get depends on how much: maternity entitlement the birth parent has taken. Shared Parental Leave and Pay: Employers’ technical guide 4 . If her partner wants to take his 8 weeks SPL/ShPP when she returns to work he will need to give his employer at least 8 weeks’ notice to start his SPL/ShPP 4 weeks earlier than previously planned. The mother should contact the Jobcentre Plus to ask for Maternity Allowance to be paid for any week of absence. You can get further advice from Maternity Action, see below. For example, a woman can be on maternity leave and her partner can be on shared parental leave at the same time. You must give a ‘notice of entitlement and intention to take shared parental leave’ at least eight weeks before the first period of shared parental leave. Note: you must agree in advance with your employer the rate of pay for any SPLIT days and whether it will be paid in addition to any ShPP or whether the ShPP will be offset against your pay. You and your partner cannot have more than 39 weeks of pay between you, made up of Maternity Allowance and Statutory Shared Parental Pay. mother will return to work at the end of week 26, mother or partner will have 13 weeks SPL to take. The NASUWT is committed to supporting you, ensuring that you receive the advice you need about what shared parental leave means for both you and your partner. “Fathers also do not have an automatic entitlement to shared parental leave. Her partner qualifies for SPL and ShPP if the mother curtails (reduces) her Maternity Allowance period. s/he must have been employed or self-employed for at least 26 weeks (not necessarily continuously) in the period of 66 weeks leading up to the expected week of childbirth and must have earned at least £30 a week on average in 13 of those weeks. You are entitled to the same leave and pay that you would normally qualify for, regardless of whether you take it separately or together. It is a good idea to speak to your employer early on about your plans to take SPL so that you can both consider what will work and how your leave will be accommodated, see How to give notice for shared parental leave/pay below. Shared parental leave and pay: ... Do both parents always qualify for shared parental leave?_____ 20 3: What are the eligibility requirements that the parents have to meet to qualify for shared parental leave? For example, a mother can let her employer know before her baby is born that she doesn't plan to use all of her 52 weeks' maternity leave and wants to convert some of it into Shared Parental Leave. Neither you nor your employer can insist on working SPLIT days, for more information, see Keeping in touch during leave. ShPP is only paid at the statutory rate so a mother will usually be better off on maternity leave for the first six weeks and possibly for longer if her employer offers enhanced contractual maternity pay. If you're having a baby or adopting a child, you and your partner are entitled to parental leave.Each province has laws that protect your right to this time with your baby. The mother can transfer a maximum of 50 weeks’ shared parental leave and 37 weeks’ Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) depending on how much maternity leave and pay she intends to take. Maternity Allowance is paid for up to 39 weeks at the flat rate of £139.58 per week (or 90% of the mother’s average earnings if she earns less than £139.58). You must give notice by the end of the 30th week of your SMP period at the latest. For more information on sickness, see Sickness during pregnancy and maternity leave. If a parent is going to be made redundant and wants to receive the remaining ShPP, s/he should book the rest of the ShPP period before their employment ends otherwise s/he will lose it. If the mother’s job ends e.g. Men are also paid a 90% rate or £140.98 a week for the length of their paternity leave. Families in receipt of Child Benefit will be subject to a high earner child benefit charge if one or more parent earns over £50,000. Office telephone: 020 7253 2288 See below for where to go for more help. If the mother returns to work earlier than the date given in the Curtailment Notice, you will not create any more SPL. This means that Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) can be created for a maximum of 37 weeks at the flat rate of £139.58 per week (or 90% of average earnings if this is less than £139.58). If you are refused Maternity Allowance during a period of sick leave you should seek advice. If you do some self-employed work as a second job, you can continue to run your business while taking SPL from your employer but you need to bear in mind that you can only take SPL for the purpose of caring for a child so you would need to show that you are still caring for your child during your leave. Both parents should check whether their employer offers enhanced shared parental pay as that may affect decisions on who takes the leave. You should get advice before making a new claim for Universal Credit as you cannot go back onto tax credits and you may be worse off on Universal Credit. For information on the basics of shared parental leave (SPL), including who is entitled, how much leave you can take, and how the system works, see Shared Parental Leave: Nuts and Bolts and Top Tips. For more information on benefits for families, see Money for Parents and Babies. You have not yet returned to work and it is discovered in the eight weeks since you gave notice that neither you nor your partner are entitled to SPL, or, you gave notice before the birth and withdraw it within six weeks of the, you gave notice before the birth and you withdraw your notice within six weeks of the. The Shared Parental Leave Regulations 2014, reg. Your SMP will end at the end of the pay week in which you give your notice and you can no longer claim it if you are off work. If the agency worker’s partner is an employee, the agency worker can reduce her SMP/Maternity Allowance in order to create SPL/ShPP for her partner to take. You can now only receive Maternity Allowance if you are absent from work during the 31 week period (39 – 8 = 31 weeks). If a mother is made redundant during her SMP period, she remains entitled to be paid up to a maximum of 39 weeks SMP if her job ends or she is made redundant (even if she has returned to work). Like shared parental leave this can be split between both parents. Employees and workers, such as agency workers, casual workers and freelance staff who are paid through PAYE, with tax and National Insurance deducted at source, can qualify for ShPP if you meet the qualifying conditions below. Mandatory equal parental leave can help level the playing field so both men and women can succeed at home and work. Yes, the Shared Parental Leave Regulations 2014, reg. how much ShPP the parent intends to take, a declaration from the other parent stating that s/he consents to the parent taking. A notice for discontinuous leave that has been withdrawn before it is agreed does not count towards the maximum of three requests for leave that you can make. In a pregnancy or maternity discrimination case you do not have to compare your treatment to that of a man to show discrimination. Shared Parental Leave legislation came into force in April 2015. As well as maternity and paternity leave, there are other leave options for eligible parents and carers. A woman is protected against discrimination on the grounds of pregnancy and maternity leave up until the end of her maternity leave period. A new leave benefit has also been introduced to give people four weeks of fully paid leave to care for a … adoption entitlement the primary adopter has taken. For queries about Statutory Maternity Pay, Adoption Pay, Paternity Pay and Shared Parental Pay: For detailed guidance for employers on SMP, SAP, SPP and Statutory Sick Pay see www.gov.uk/government/collections/statutory-pay, For payments of Statutory Maternity Pay/Adoption Pay/Paternity Pay/Shared Parental Pay or Statutory Sick Pay if your employer has gone. The amount of SPL available is calculated from the date in the Curtailment Notice e.g. Your employer can agree to more than three notices. In general, you must have been working for your employer for at least a year to get the full amount of parental leave. Employers should bear in mind that one parent may have left their job or the parents may have separated without this affecting their entitlement to shared parental leave. The decision-maker’s guide has not yet been amended to reflect these provisions. You should bear in mind that Government guidance on shared parental leave has conflicting information on this: ‘Employed mothers who qualify for MA cannot take SPL or ShPP themselves but can ‘create’ SPL and/or ShPP for an employed father or partner to take….’ page 10. Parents must make sure that they want to take the SPL/ShPP before the mother gives notice to curtail leave and/or pay as notice is binding and cannot be revoked (cancelled) except in very limited circumstances. working for the same employer) but you should not be refused work because you have taken time off to have a baby. After the first six weeks SMP is paid at the statutory rate. Taking parental leave. If your citizen child is born, or has an EDD before 1 July 2017, you will be entitled to 1 week of shared parental leave, capped at $2,500, including CPF. the date your maternity leave ended. If only one parent is taking SPL, that parent can work up to 20 SPLIT days during their SPL. If you have given your employer a booking notice requesting discontinuous leave and your employer has refused the request or no agreement has been reached within the two-week discussion period as to when the leave will be taken, you may withdraw the period of leave notice. Your partner can still take their SPL/ShPP as planned or s/he can give notice to change the dates of their leave. The partner who does not get adoption leave and pay might be able to get paternity leave and pay. Note: if your SMP started on a Friday, your pay week will end on a Thursday. To check your eligibility see www.gov.uk/civil-legal-advice, To search for specialist legal advisers or solicitors in your area see: find-legal-advice.justice.gov.uk, Help and advice on discrimination and human rights www.equalityadvisoryservice.com, Helpline: 0808 800 0082 Mon – Fri 9am – 7pm, Sat 10am – 2pm, For information and advice about discrimination law www.equalityhumanrights.com, For information for employees and employers about pregnancy and maternity rights in the workplace see: www.equalityhumanrights.com/about-us/our-work/key-projects/managing-pregnancy-and-maternity-workplace, The government’s online information service www.gov.uk, To make new telephone benefit claims or request claim forms, including Maternity Allowance and Sure Start Maternity Grant: 0800 055 6688 Mon – Fri 8am – 6pm, For ESA/JSA/Income Support claims: 0800 169 0310 Mon – Fri 8am – 6pm, For Maternity Allowance claims: 0800 169 0283 Mon – Fri 8am – 6pm, For Sure Start Maternity Grant claims: 0800 169 0140 Mon – Fri 8am – 6pm/For Best Start Grant claims in Scotland: 0800 182 2222, Universal Credit helpline – for new claims and existing online claims: 0800 328 5644. Melissa intended to work up to the birth and then take 31 weeks of maternity leave and SMP (39 – 8 = 31 weeks). Parents can take leave at the same time or separately. This means that you continue to accrue any contractual annual leave that your employer offers in addition to your statutory annual leave entitlement and any other benefits you are entitled to under your contract of employment. If you are an agency worker or on a zero hours contact, you are not entitled to maternity leave or SPL but if you are getting SMP or Maternity Allowance you can end your SMP/Maternity Allowance early in order to create shared parental leave/pay for your partner. Example: Melissa curtailed her maternity leave/SMP by 8 weeks so that her partner could take 8 weeks SPL/ShPP when she returns to work. Yes, both parents can be absent from work on shared parental leave at the same time. For more information on how to find your local Citizens Advice Bureau, see: https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/about-us/contact-us/contact-us/contact-us/, If you are eligible for legal aid you can get free legal advice on 0345 345 4 345 (offers translation service). Parents are still entitled to take their maternity, paternity or adoption leave, however a mother or adopter will need to reduce their maternity/adoption leave in order for either … Shared Parental Leave Shared parental leave is statutory leave for new parents, including adopters. If you are unable to take all your annual leave in the leave year because of absence on shared parental leave or other types of parental leave, your employer should allow you to carry the leave forward to the next leave year. For example, if one parent’s employer has not agreed a pattern of discontinuous leave, both parents may wish to withdraw it. Both parents have to meet conditions about their employment and earnings. There is no extra statutory pay available to parents wishing to take SPL (beyond the amounts currently available for Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP)). If the mother returns to work earlier than the date given in the Curtailment Notice, you cannot create any more ShPP. If her partner takes all of the rest of her leave and pay as shared parental leave and pay, the ShPP will be paid at the flat rate of £139.58 per week (or 90% of average earnings if this is less than £139.58). A parent must be employed up to the week in which SPL/ShPP starts, so if the job comes to an end (e.g. This means that parents can now share up to 40 weeks of parental benefits with the standard option and up to 69 weeks of parental benefits with the extended option. If the mother takes SPL she can claim Maternity Allowance for any week of absence from work during the 39 week Maternity Allowance period, providing she has not curtailed her Maternity Allowance. Any SMP or MA the mother receives as a result of sickness during the maternity pay period does not reduce the number of weeks of ShPP available to the parents, as the number of weeks available is worked out from the date she returned to work. Note: if the mother does not qualify for SMP, but is getting Maternity Allowance instead, she will not be entitled to ShPP but will meet the employment and earnings test to enable her employed partner to qualify for SPL/ShPP. Charity reg. There is a 26-week qualifying period in employment and the adopter or partner must be eligible for statutory adoption pay or paternity pay or meet the employment and earnings test. Your employer must have a good reason why you cannot return to your old job, for example, changes in the workplace that have happened while you were away. Can I be made redundant during SPL? It is very important to get up-to-date advice as law and guidance changes. 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