You must tell your employer that you have given birth as soon as possible, and make sure they know the date your baby arrived. Your employer can ask to have this in writing, usually in the form of the baby’s certificate. The law suggests you show this to your employer within 21 days, but of course if you can’t do this because it’s impractical to do so, just do it as soon as you can.
All female employees are entitled to up to 52 weeks of maternity leave, although you should tell your employer at least 15 weeks in advance of your due date to allow them to make provision for you after you leave to have your baby.
Maternity leave is split into ordinary maternity leave, which lasts for 26 weeks, after which a new mother may decide to take additional maternity of up to another 26 weeks. Most people decide how long they’re going to take in advance, so their employer can arrange cover for you while you’re away.
A woman is entitled to maternity leave without feeling discriminated against, and it’s against the law for an employer to treat someone differently because they’re taking (or request) maternity leave, even if your baby is born early.
If you think your employer has treated you unfairly after your child has been born before your due date, or if you think that your employer has not applied statutory maternity pay correctly, then QualitySolicitors are here to help. We can even have a quick five-minute chat for free to listen to what’s happened and then explain how we can help. Just call us on 08082747557 and we’ll take it from there.