Significant changes to the “family friendly” employment rules were introduced on 1 October, extending maternity, paternity and adoption leave, and widening parents’ rights to request flexible working.  These changes are likely to have a big impact on employers and employees, but could easily be missed due to all the recent publicity about Age Discrimination.

BACKGROUND

The Maternity and Parental Leave and the Paternity and Adoption Leave (Amendment) Regulations 2006 are the first of the Regulations to be brought into force under the new Work and Families Act 2006. The Regulations, which came into force on 1 October 2006 take effect in relation to employees whose expected week of childbirth is on or after 1 April 2007. Employers and employees should ensure that they are aware of and prepared for the changes before this date, as the legislation will affect women who are pregnant as of July 2006. This article details some of the main changes to look out for.

MATERNITY & ADOPTION

Extra Maternity Leave

Under previous legislation, all women were entitled to 26 weeks’ maternity leave, regardless of their length of service with their employer. However, to be entitled to a longer period of leave (“additional maternity leave”), the law required women to have fulfilled a six-month service requirement. From April 2007, the service requirement is removed, so a woman who qualifies for the first six months’ leave will also qualify for a further six months of additional maternity leave. The Regulations therefore mean that women whose expected week of childbirth is on or after 1 April 2007 will be entitled to a maximum of 52 weeks maternity leave.

Notice of Return From Maternity

If an employee intends to return early from her maternity leave, the Regulations require that they must now give their employer eight weeks notice that they intend to return. This period has been extended from 28 days. This is good news for employers, as it will allow more time to manage cover for employees over the maternity leave period.

Maternity & Adoption Pay

Under the previous law, Statutory Maternity Pay and Statutory Adoption Pay were payable for a maximum of 26 weeks. The maternity and adoption pay period has now been extended to a maximum of 39 weeks, however it is the Government’s intention that this will increase to 52 weeks by 2010. Until this time, three months of an employee’s maternity or adoption leave will remain unpaid, unless there are more generous terms contained in the employee’s contract of employment.

“Keeping In Touch” Days

Prior to the new Regulations, women and adopters were discouraged from making contact with their employers during their period of leave, as doing so meant that they might risk losing their entitlement to maternity and adoption pay. This also presented difficulties for employers in ensuring that employees were kept ‘up to speed’ on work activities.

The new Regulations mean that employees can now take up to ten ‘keeping in touch’ days, which enable an employee to work for their employer without losing their pay and leave entitlement. The days are for the purposes of training and other activities, and are intended to ensure that the employee’s return to work is as efficient and smooth as possible.

Distinct from the keeping in touch days, employers are permitted to make ‘reasonable contact’ with employees on maternity or adoption leave. It is intended that this will remove the uncertainty felt by many employers as to whether it is lawful for them to contact employees without jeopardising their employee’s right to receive pay.  At the current time, guidance has not been issued as to what is meant by ‘reasonable contact’, however it is thought that this will be separate from the keeping in touch days, and will not involve the employee in actual work.

PATERNITY LEAVE

Reflecting the recent social trend where fathers are taking a more active role in childcare, consultation is currently taking place on new legislation, which extends the rights of working fathers. Currently, employees who have 26 weeks of continuous service may claim up to two weeks of paternity leave. From April 2007, fathers that qualify under the legislation may be able to claim up to 26 weeks of additional paternity leave on top of this period. This additional period of leave must be taken before the child’s first birthday, and is intended to enable women to return to work after six months leave. Interestingly, latest research by the EOC has shown that one third of men do not take the leave to which they are entitled. This additional paternity leave is likely to be unpaid, therefore it is uncertain whether the new legislation will open up more opportunities for men to take an equal role in parenting.  The specific details of the scheme are yet to be published.

FLEXIBLE WORKING

Since 2003, employees who care for a child under the age of six years, or in the case of a disabled child under eighteen years, have been entitled to request flexible working. Flexible working can involve a change in terms and conditions of employment, place of work and working hours. Although it is open to an employer to refuse a request for flexible working if he considers that any of the prescribed grounds apply (e.g. additional burden of costs, inability to organise work amongst existing staff), Government figures estimate that only one in ten requests by employees are rejected. Following its success, new legislation is expected to extend the initiative to employees who have caring responsibilities for adults. The Regulations are still in their draft form, and are expected to come into force in April 2007.

This latest array of family friendly policies are certainly encouraging from an employee’s point of view, but until all of the changes are brought into force, it is too early to assess whether they will present parents with more choices in reality. While Statutory Maternity and Paternity Pay remain capped and the UK’s ‘long hours culture’ persists, an ideal work-life balance may still be exactly that, an ideal. 

If you would like further information about any of the matters raised here or would like advice about employment issues generally, please contact Kerry Waters ( This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ) of the Clarion Solicitors LLP Employment Team or telephone 0113 222 3219.