How to deal with keeping-in-touch days during maternity leave

Keeping-in-touch days provide mothers with the possibility of being able to work for up to 10 days without bringing a period of maternity leave to an end. Below we round up some of the key points for employers on how to deal with keeping-in-touch days during maternity leave:

• Be aware that an employee may work for up to 10 days during her maternity leave without bringing her leave to an end or losing her statutory maternity pay.
• Remember that any days of work during maternity leave must be agreed. You do not have to offer an employee any days of work during her maternity leave, nor can she insist on working.
• Take into account that keeping-in-touch days may be worked at any point in an employee’s maternity leave other than during the two weeks’ compulsory maternity leave immediately after the birth (four weeks where the employee works in a factory).
• Remember that keeping-in-touch days during maternity leave can be used for any work-related activity, including attending training, conferences and team meetings.
• Remember that any work done on a day during an employee’s maternity leave period will count as a whole keeping-in-touch day, even if it is for only an hour or so.
• Hold a pre-maternity-leave interview to discuss matters such as the amount and type of contact that an employee would like during her maternity leave and working during her leave.
• Consider what practical arrangements need to be made to enable an employee to work during her maternity leave.
• Be very clear about how much an employee will be paid for working a keeping-in-touch day during her maternity leave, and whether her statutory maternity pay will be paid in addition to payment for the keeping-in-touch day or offset against it.
• Bear in mind that, once her 10 keeping-in-touch days have been used, an employee will lose a week’s statutory maternity pay for any week in which she does any work during her maternity leave.