Maternity leave

What it means

Maternity leave is statutory time off connected with childbirth and the care of a newborn. The Labour Code grants 34 weeks, and a longer period to a single mother and where two or more children are born.

It is not a benefit: the leave itself is an obstacle at work on the employee side, while income is replaced by maternity benefit from the Social Insurance Agency. Parental leave may follow it and is a separate institute.

Maternity leave belongs to the mother only. A father who cares for the child is entitled under the Labour Code to parental leave from the birth and, if the conditions are met, may also draw maternity benefit. His case shows even more clearly that the time off work and the benefit from the Social Insurance Agency are two different things with different rules.

How it works in practice

Leave normally starts at the beginning of the sixth week before the expected date of birth. The employer pays no wage but holds the post open and must put the employee back on her original work on return, reporting the change to the Social Insurance Agency.

Entitlement to the benefit follows the insurance, not the leave: at least 270 days of sickness insurance in the two years before the birth are required. The doctor issues the claim and it reaches the Social Insurance Agency through the employer.

For annual leave purposes maternity leave counts as time worked, so the employee keeps accruing annual leave during it. We therefore carry the entitlement on in the payroll records and, before her return, remind the client that if she asks, the leave must be granted straight after maternity leave ends.

What to watch out for

Ending an employment or a self-employed registration shortly before the birth is an expensive move. Without the 270 days of insurance no maternity benefit arises at all, and the family is left with the parental allowance alone, which is lower and takes no account of previous earnings.

Notice given to an employee during maternity leave is invalid, because it is a protected period. A company that abolishes her post in a reorganisation and sends notice of termination risks a dispute over the invalid dismissal and paying wage compensation for the whole time the dispute runs.