Countless surveys highlight the need to achieve a healthier work-life balance and in addition we have seen a raft of changes to employment legislation to help in achieving this.
However the challenges facing many employees managing their home and work commitments is not simply a challenge for the individual but also for the employer, and it is important for small business owners to remember that there are several key pieces of legislation to consider:
1. Maternity leave
A pregnant employee is entitled to paid time off to attend antenatal appointments and 52 weeks’ maternity leave, which can begin any time from 11 weeks before the expected week of confinement (EWC). This is made up of 26 weeks’ ordinary maternity leave and 26 weeks’ additional maternity leave.
The minimum amount of leave a new mother must take after the birth of a baby is two weeks (four weeks for factory workers).
She must notify you of her pregnancy in or before the 15th week before the EWC, or, if that is not reasonably practicable, as soon as possible.
If she intends to return to work before the end of the 52-week maternity leave period, or change her previously-notified return date, she should give at least eight weeks’ notice.
You must confirm the end date of the maternity leave to the employee within 28 days of receipt of her notification.
An employee returning after maternity leave is entitled to return to the same job on the same terms and conditions, or she must be given another job of similar worth on the same terms and conditions.
Women can return to work on a limited basis during maternity leave without causing the maternity leave to end. Up to a maximum of 10 working days (generally referred to as ‘keeping-in-touch (KIT) days’) are allowed.
You’re allowed to make ‘reasonable contact’ with your employee during maternity leave and you should maintain some level of contact so that the employee can be kept informed, but you cannot pressure them to take less than their full leave entitlement.
Employees on maternity leave will continue to accrue both statutory and any contractual entitlement during maternity leave. It is not possible for an employee to take annual leave at the same time as maternity leave. Please contact the Forum of Private Business for further details of this.
2. Paternity leave
To qualify for paternity leave, an employee must be the father of a child or be married to, or the partner of, the child’s mother, including same-sex partners.
Employees are currently entitled to take two weeks’ paternity leave. These weeks must be taken either as one week’s leave or two consecutive weeks’ leave – not two separate weeks or individual days. The leave must be taken within 56 days of the child’s birth, or, if the child is born prematurely, of the EWC.
Additional paternity leave (APL)
Additional paternity leave came into force in 2011, allowing mothers to choose between taking full maternity leave or returning to work early and allowing their partner to take the remainder of the leave instead.
It is also worth noting that under a new system of flexible parental leave, parents will be able to choose how they share the care of their child in the first year after birth. Employed mothers will still be entitled to 52 weeks of maternity leave; however, working parents will be able to opt to share the leave.
Mothers will have to take at least the initial two weeks of leave following the birth as a recovery period. Following that they can choose to end the maternity leave and the parents can opt to share the remaining leave as flexible parental leave.
The government will legislate on this year and plan to introduce the changes to flexible parental leave in 2015.
3. Adoption and parental leave
In terms of adoption leave, the statutory rights that apply to employees (male or female) who adopt closely mirror the provision for maternity rights.
Parental leave applies to parents with at least one year’s continuous employment with you have the right to take up to 18 weeks’ unpaid time off to look after a child under five or under 18 and receiving disability allowance. Employees can take a maximum of four weeks’ leave per child in any year.
4. Time off for dependants
In addition to childcare-related leave entitlements, employees are entitled to a reasonable amount of unpaid time off to deal with emergencies involving a dependant. All employees qualify for time off for dependants from day one of employment.
5. Flexible working
In addition to leave entitlements, employees with children under 17 years old or who are carers, and have worked for you for at least 26 weeks, have the right to make a request to adopt flexible working arrangements to care for an adult or child.
While as an employer you do not have to agree, you do have a legal obligation to consider any flexible working request.
What’s more, from 30th June 2014 the flexible working regulations will be amended. This will mean that the right to request flexible working will be extended to cover all employees after 26 weeks’ service, rather than only those with children under the age of 17 (or 18 if the child is disabled) and certain carers.
