There appears to have been something in the water at an Aberdeen employment law and HR firm with four staff pregnancies in the last year alone.Empire HR, which has 22 employees, has had four members of their consultancy team on maternity leave following the bumper year of bumps.
Three of the women, Joanna Jacob, Faye Barron and Morag Rose, work at the company’s headquarters in Aberdeen as part of the advice line team, while Maureen McKay, is a home worker. Three are still on maternity leave, which has led to some temporary team changes at the small business but as experts in this field, Empire HR had a strong maternity policy in place to help cope with the arising issues.
Many companies, however, are not prepared to deal effectively with maternity in the workplace and it is often wrongly viewed as a burden to employers, as it can be a costly exercise for small businesses.
Empire HR CEO, Steve Cook, said: “We are delighted with the new healthy additions and having a good understanding of our maternity policy has certainly been very useful this year. “On a serious note, there is bound to be a loss for any organisation but it’s difficult to measure. We had to go through the recruitment process four times and there is a very tangible cost to that. Our clients have been extremely understanding and each new member of staff has undergone intensive training on arrival and it’s been a steep learning curve. “We have a great team of people who have worked together to cover for the maternity posts, and we have worked hard to ensure that the new mums are still part of the Empire family by encouraging them to write about their maternity leave experience on the company blog.
“Empire HR has seen continued growth and it’s important that we have a great team that can re-shape to accommodate issues such as maternity leave.” Employers are usually faced with a number of concerns when a member of staff announces they are expecting, such as losing a key member of a team, having to find a temporary replacement and, of course, the additional costs.
It’s a worrying time for any organisation but it can naturally have a greater impact on smaller businesses like Empire HR. However, the employment law firm claims that if clear guidelines are in place the whole process of the pregnancy, maternity leave and return to work should be stress free for all concerned.
In Empire HR’s case, a genuine interest in the welfare of the new mums and securing good quality maternity cover has played a huge role in coping with the maternity issues which arose this year.
The Empire team were hugely supportive of the mums-to-be and worked together to ensure their workload was manageable during busy times. Necessary risk assessments were also carried out in the work place for the expectant mums, they were given parking spaces closer to the door, they were encouraged to take more rest breaks and were allocated desks near a window if they required fresh air.
The pregnant workers were encouraged to participate in ‘keeping in touch days’ to ensure they were not completely isolated from the workplace and that they still felt part of the Empire team. Faye Barron said: “We were so lucky that the team were really supportive. I almost felt isolated from work so the ‘keeping in touch’ days really helped. I think it can be easy for employees to be forgotten once they have left on maternity leave due to busy workloads but we were all invited to training days, office outings and team meetings, so we still felt very much part of the team during our leave.”
To keep employers up-to-date – here is a rundown of the current Maternity Rights:
• When an employee tells an employer that she is pregnant, the employer has a duty to carry out a health and safety risk assessment in order to determine whether there are any specific risks to her or her unborn child.
• Employees are entitled to paid time off to attend ante-natal appointments.
• Employees are entitled to 52 weeks maternity leave. Employees are required to notify their employer in writing of their intention to take maternity leave by the 15th week before their due date.
• If an employee is absent due to a pregnancy related sickness during the four weeks prior to their due date, maternity leave will start automatically.
• Employees are not allowed to return to work until at least two weeks after they have given birth (four weeks in certain cases).
• Employees are entitled to 39 weeks Statutory Maternity Pay if they fulfill certain qualifying conditions. For the first 6
weeks this is paid at 90% of their normal pay. For the next 33 weeks, this is paid at either 90% of their normal pay or the rate set by the Government, whichever is lower. The current rate set by the Government is £124.88.
• To qualify for Statutory Maternity Pay an employee must have been employed for at least 26 weeks before the 15th week before their due date. They must also earn more than the National Insurance Lower Earnings Level during a qualifying period.
• Employees who do not qualify for Statutory Maternity Pay may be entitled to receive Maternity Allowance which is paid by the Government.
• Employees continue to accrue all contractual benefits (apart from remuneration) throughout their maternity leave. This includes annual leave.
• During maternity leave, employees are entitled to agree with their employer to work for up to 10 days, without this affecting their Statutory Maternity Pay. These are called ‘Keeping in Touch Days’.
• Employees are normally entitled to return to the job they left on their return to work.
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