Maternity & paternity
Pregnant employees are entitled to take 52 weeks' maternity leave. Pregnant employees' partners are entitled to take two weeks' ordinary paternity leave provided that they have the required continuous service.
Parents with babies due on or after 5 April 2015 are entitled to take shared parental leave. Shared parental leave enables mothers to commit to ending their maternity leave and pay at a future date, and to share the untaken balance of leave and pay as shared parental leave and pay with their partner.
April 2020 employment law changes: eight tasks for HR
Each April, HR professionals must ensure that their organisation complies with the latest round of amended employment laws and deadlines....
Personnel Today Awards 2020 open for entries
Entries have opened for the 2020 Personnel Today Awards, recognising the HR professionals, teams and suppliers that have delivered outstanding...
Quarter of women leave for another employer after career break
A quarter of mothers do not return to the same employer after maternity leave because they feel the organisation’s practices...
Government to announce extra paid leave for parents of premature babies
Parents of premature babies will be able to claim an extra £160 per week in new measures set to be...
UK women least optimistic about impact of parenthood on career
Men are more likely than women to believe it possible to rise to the top of their careers while still...
Writing a parental bereavement leave policy: a guide for HR
Employers should be updating their policies and procedures to take account of the introduction of parental bereavement leave in April....
Fathers ‘more likely to seek mental health support than mothers’
Fathers are four times more likely to seek mental health support than mothers, according to an online support service for...
Shared parental pay case refused Supreme Court appeal
A highly anticipated case to test whether it is discriminatory for employers to enhance maternity pay while not doing the...
Prepare for surge in shared parental leave requests, law firm urges
Almost two-fifths of employees who plan to have children in the future expect to take shared parental leave – a...
Could parental bereavement leave be too restrictive?
It’s been welcomed by many as an important change to employment law, but could the Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay...
Jack’s Law: Statutory parental bereavement leave rules to start in April 2020
Parents who suffer stillbirth or loss of a child will be entitled to two weeks’ leave.
Sacked pregnant worker wins £17k compensation from Liz Earle Beauty Company
Helen Larkin was made redundant at eight months' pregnant.
Family-friendly rights: what to look out for in 2020 and beyond
Brexit seemed to put the brakes on progress for family-friendly rights last year, but 2020 and beyond could see some...
April 2020 statutory maternity, paternity and sick pay rates published
The government has published the proposed statutory rates for maternity pay, paternity pay, shared parental pay, adoption pay and sick...
Top 10 HR questions December 2019: Sickness absence and unused annual leave
How much control can employers have over the timing of employees’ annual leave?
Employers with holiday years that run from...
