Maternity leave

loriexxx

Is it unusual on my contract there is no section regarding maternity leave. Should I take this up with hr

Mrs OBumble

Not necessarily. It depends who you work for. Many small to medium private sector companies allow you to take the legally required maternity leave time without needing to say in their contracts - suffice to say all you are entitled to during this time is the state Maternity Benefit.

Rachiee

If it's not in your contract id say you just get statutory entitlement worth asking but employer is under no obligation to provide anything better unfortunately.

bee06

I have worked for a few multinationals and there has never been anything in my contract about maternity leave. It's always in the company policies. The policy has always been above statutory as well.

aine92

My job does not "allow" maternity leave, as in it is unpaid for the amount of time you take. I would check.

StarBright01

I would assume left out as they don't cover maternity

Sunny Dayz

If there is nothing mentioned in the contract about maternity leave then it is just the basic statutory entitlement on 26 weeks unpaid leave and maternity benefit paid to you by the state. There is no obligation on the company to pay you while you are out on maternity leave unless it is stated in your contract.

Yellow_Blue

Just wanted to refresh this topic as I am a little confused.

I'm reading citizen information page and it looks kinda scary:

"Employers are not obliged to pay women who are on maternity leave."

So is this right that you are not actually entitled for maternity leave if nothing is mentioned in your contract?



Also this part:

"You may qualify for Maternity Benefit from the Department of Social Protection if you have sufficient PRSI contributions."

So you may not qualify at all, right?

What are the sufficient PRSI contributions? Let's say I was working 5 years within recent period of 7 years. With 2 years of being unemployed and not receiving social benefits , salary growing from 21 to 40 k. Is this sufficient for this type of benefit? Will my spouse's income be considered?


I would be really greatful if someone brings some light on this.

Thanks a mill.

davo10

You are entitled to maternity leave from work, it is a statutory right, but you are not entitled to be paid by your employer. Any payment from your place if work is at the discretion of your employer.

If you want to find out if you are entitled to maternity benefit, contact the Dept of Social and Family Affairs in Letterkenny. Google their number and give them your RSI number, they will be able to tell you if you qualify for benefit.

00353 (0) 74 9160460

Peregrinus

Sunny Dayz wrote: »

If there is nothing mentioned in the contract about maternity leave then it is just the basic statutory entitlement on 26 weeks unpaid leave and maternity benefit paid to you by the state. There is no obligation on the company to pay you while you are out on maternity leave unless it is stated in your contract.

There's no contractual obligation, but that doesn't mean that they don't in fact pay it. They may have quite generous maternity leave policies in place, just not written into the contract. The only way to find out is to ask.