maternity pay

Carol2057

Is it true that you dont get your maternity pay if you havent been permanent in your job for over 2 years? Someone told me you wouldn get maternity pay if you havent been permanent for a certain lenght of time? In the public sector? Like would you get the pay/ salary scale that you were earning up until you left for maternity leave? Really confused

Wishbone Ash

This may help:

Maternity Benefit is paid by the Department of Social Protection to women who have a certain number of paid PRSI contributions on their social insurance record and who are in insurable employment up to the first day of their maternity leave. The last day of work can be within 16 weeks of the end of the week your baby is due.

The PRSI contributions can be from both employment or self-employment - the PRSI classes that count for Maternity Benefit are A, E, H and S (self-employed).

If you are employed you must have:

At least 39 weeks PRSI paid in the 12-month period before the first day of your maternity leave
Or

At least 39 weeks PRSI paid since first starting work and at least 39 weeks PRSI paid or credited in the relevant tax year or in the tax year immediately following the relevant tax year. For example, if you are going on maternity leave in 2012, the relevant tax year is 2010 and the year following that is 2011.
Or

At least 26 weeks PRSI paid in the relevant tax year and at least 26 weeks PRSI paid in the tax year immediately before the relevant tax year. For example, if you are going on maternity leave in 2012, the relevant tax year is 2010 and the year before that is 2009.
If you do not meet these PRSI conditions and you were self-employed before starting work as an employee, you can use your Class S contributions to qualify for Maternity Benefit - see PRSI conditions for self-employed people below.

davo10

Carol your employer is not required to pay you anything during maternity leave, you are only entitled to a dept of social welfare payment if you qualify.

Wishbone Ash

Carol2057 wrote: »

In the public sector?

In the public sector it depends on your class of PRSI. I'm open to correction on this but if you are an 'officer' grade and in continuous employment there since before April 1995, you will probably be a class D and probably be entitled to normal basic pay.

Equality

Are you actually a public sector employee, or working on a contract in the public sector? There can be a big difference.

Every public sector permanent contract I have seen pays full pay if on maternity leave (and I have seen a lot of them). This applies even if you start work at age 16 on a Monday and want to go on mat leave on the Tuesday. You would not, in this case, qualify for maternity benefit from social welfare, but the public sector employer will pay you your full salary regardless.

The public sector also pays full salary if on sick leave during the pregnancy. In addition, so long as the sick cert states 'complications of pregnancy' the sick leave is written off and cannot be counted as sick leave when counting for the purpose of awarding an increment or promotion. This is on gender equity grounds, as men cannot suffer from complications of pregnancy. Some public sector workers are absent for the whole of the pregnancy, as well as the maternity leave.

tatli_lokma

Equality wrote: »

In addition, so long as the sick cert states 'complications of pregnancy' the sick leave is written off and cannot be counted as sick leave when counting for the purpose of awarding an increment or promotion. This is on gender equity grounds, as men cannot suffer from complications of pregnancy.

WOW! :eek: really? so does that apply to all illnesses where it is gender specific? for e.g if a female employee had a hysterectomy, or a male employee had testicular cancer?

Equality

Pregnancy complications goes on the sick cert if pregnant, as this carries the greatest level of benefits.

The hysterectomy related sick leave is written off under the same rule as a broken leg - as a non recurring condition. Nothing to do with gender.

You can't get the cancer written off (if anyone thinks you can please tell me how, as I would like to know) but if you retire you can use it to get additional years on your pension, therfore a bigger pension. You can get up to seven additional years, any type of cancer, but the number of years depends on the severity of the cancer. Also not gender related.

tatli_lokma

Equality wrote: »

Pregnancy complications goes on the sick cert if pregnant, as this carries the greatest level of benefits.

The hysterectomy related sick leave is written off under the same rule as a broken leg - as a non recurring condition. Nothing to do with gender.

You can't get the cancer written off (if anyone thinks you can please tell me how, as I would like to know) but if you retire you can use it to get additional years on your pension, therfore a bigger pension. You can get up to seven additional years, any type of cancer, but the number of years depends on the severity of the cancer. Also not gender related.

Very interesting (and in some cases a bit bizarre!).
I find it strange that one gender specific medical condition has the rule applied and not another but I'm not surprised by it.

But don't want to drag the thread too far off topic, so I won't ask anymore about it on this thread, but really interesting to know!