Will I still get a pay rise when I'm on Maternity / Shared Parental Leave?

It's coming up to that time of year where Teacher's go through the appraisal process. For many of us that means a move up the pay scale ladder, and a pay increase award to keep teacher's pay in line with inflation. But how does this affect your pay if you are on maternity leave? Today's blog will look at everything you need to know!

Do I get pay increases whilst on maternity leave?

Parents taking leave must not be disadvantaged by it. If you are on maternity/paternity/shared parental leave at the point that you would normally go through the appraisal process and move up a rung on the pay scale, then you must still move up as normal, unless there is a specific reason related to your performance prior to maternity leave that means you wouldn't (not common in teaching!) . This must not be at all related to the fact that you have had time off to be on family leave. You are entitled to apply to move up to UPS or between the UPS bands too, and should not be held at a disadvantage because you have been in school for less of the year to show impact. See this helpful article from the NEU.

Pay increases and occupational maternity pay

Occupational pay refers to what your school pay you on top of any statutory pay. For teachers this is usually paying the first four weeks an additional 10% (to top the 90% statutory rate up to full pay) and then paying weeks 7 to 18 at 50% pay on top of statutory pay. These payments are something your employer has chosen to give you, and did not have to. They can, therefore, attach conditions to it - such as the commonly known requirements that you have worked there for a year by the due date in order to be eligible, and that you must return for 13 weeks after maternity leave to avoid paying it back. If you are on occupational pay when the pay rate changes on 1st September, or soon after, whether or not your occupational pay will be based on that or your former salary will depend on how your employer calculates occupational pay.

There are two main ways:

1) Your occupational pay is based on your average salary in the qualifying period - which is traditionally the eight week period 15 weeks before your due date (weeks 17 - 25 of your pregnancy). If the eight weeks all fell on your old salary this is what would be used, if it was a mixture the average figure across those is used.

2) Your salary at the due date. More straight forward, anyone due 01/09 onwards would receive occupational pay based on their new salary - and this should be backdated in the same way that teacher salaries often are if pay awards don't take effect until later in the Autumn term .

In our experience most schools use the option one approach above, you will need to ask your school HR if it is not detailed in the maternity policy.

Pay increases and statutory pay

The courts ruled in a case famously known as the Alabaster ruling, that if someone receives a salary increase at any time during their maternity leave then it will apply to the statutory pay across their whole leave period - and the original six weeks of 90% pay must be recalculated. This means that if you are on maternity leave now and you move up on the pay scale / receive the 3.5% pay rise - your employer must recalculate the six weeks 90% pay give to you initially at the start of your leave. Note that this only applies to you if the pay increase occurred during your maternity leave - not if you have already "returned" and moved to Shared Parental Leave.

Whether this means you end up with any extra pay in your payslip again depends on occupational pay. If your employer topped up some of those weeks to 100% pay, and the new 90% figure is still less than what you actually got once it was topped up, no money will be owed to you. If your policy is statutory pay only for the first six weeks, or for two of those, then those weeks should be adjusted and a payment made.

Here is an example:

Jane went on maternity leave in July, she earns £52,000 a year. Her employer pays occupational maternity pay as per the burgundy book. In September she received a 3.5% pay rise. As she is at the top of her pay scale she does not receive any other increases.

Jane was paid £1000 per weeks for the first four weeks of her leave, and £900 for weeks 5 and 6.

Jane's weekly pay has increased from £1000 to £1035. 90% of that is £931.50

Jane is not due any back pay for weeks 1 to 4 as she already received more than £931.50. However, she is due £31.50 for week 5 and for week 6, so £63 in total.

As above, if you have already moved to SPL by 01/09 then this will not apply to you - however, you are likely to have gained much more pay by receiving full pay over the summer holidays!

Pay increases and Shared Parental Leave

Any periods in which you return to work between blocks of shared parental leave should be paid at the current salary for that period. This means that if you started maternity leave in April, and returned for the summer holidays, this would be at your existing salary. However, when you return for October half term or Christmas etc, they must be paid at your new rate. If your school hasn't implemented these in time for October you should receive it as back pay in the same way that everyone else does for any pay paid from 01/09 onwards at the old rate prior to the increase being set up.