Maternity Policy

Are pregnant employees entitled to time off?

At present in Jersey, there is no statutory right to maternity leave, although it is expected that this issue will be addressed in 2011/12. The Social Security Minister has announced the proposals that he intends to put before the States. Employers may wish to model their policy on the proposals, in readiness for the legislation, or may wish to adopt a more generous policy such as that outlined below.

Example of a typical Maternity Leave Policy

irrespective of their length of service, women are entitled to two (2) weeks maternity leave on full pay (less the standard rate of Social Security Maternity Allowance) immediately following the birth of the baby. A further 6 weeks unpaid maternity leave will be granted on request.
an employee who has been employed on a permanent basis for at least one year, including a satisfactory probation period, will have an enhanced entitlement as below;
employees on fixed term contracts must have at least one year remaining on the contract;
the employee must notify the relevant manager in the Company at least three months in advance of the expected date of confinement and also state her intention to return to work for the same number of hours as she worked prior to taking maternity leave. Provision may be made for return on a part-time basis by agreement;
a period of 18 weeks is allowed for maternity leave, which can be extended in exceptional circumstances at the discretion of the Company;
the employee can decide when to start maternity leave but is expected to take medical advice;
the employee is paid 100% of normal pensionable pay for the first 2 weeks and 90% of normal pensionable pay for the following 10 weeks; the remaining 6 weeks will be unpaid. (The employer may make some provisos e.g. that a proportion of that amount will be retained until the employee has returned to work for three months continuously and if the employee fails to complete three months, the retained money will not be paid and the employee may be required to pay back the money already paid to her);
health and social security contributions will continue to be deducted while maternity payments are being made;
the standard rate of Social Security Maternity Allowance will be offset against maternity payments regardless of whether the employee receives the allowance;
the full period of maternity leave will count as pensionable service, provided that the employee is a member of the Company’s scheme and opts to continue her contributions as if her pay had not been interrupted. The employer will continue to pay its percentage of contributions in this case;
the twelve weeks paid maternity leave will attract annual leave;
expectant mothers will be given time off to attend ante-natal appointments, subject to certain provisos that the employer may consider are appropriate;
where the employee is unable to return to her former post, every effort will made to appoint her to another post in the same grade;
unpaid maternity leave can be extended on production of a medical certificate.

Where can you get more information?

JACS can advise on Maternity Policy

For advice on Social Security Maternity Allowance contact Social Security Department on (01534) 445505