What do I do if my nanny is pregnant?

If your nanny becomes pregnant you have a duty to administer SMP on her behalf.

Q. Is my nanny entitled to Maternity leave?

A. Any pregnant employee may take 52 weeks leave regardless of their length of service. If they wish to return before the end of the 52 weeks they must give the employer 8 weeks notice.

Q. What about Maternity pay? How long does my nanny have to have worked with me before she becomes entitled to SMP?

A. The employee cannot be pregnant when she starts her new employment. She qualifies for SMP if she has been in the same employment for 26 weeks (i.e. six months) prior to the "notification week". The "notification week" is 15 weeks before the baby's due date.

Q. What is the amount of SMP?

A. The first 6 weeks are at 90% of nanny’s gross wage and the remaining 33 weeks are at the current SMP rate (select text link to view latest rates), unless nanny’s salary is less than that in which case it remains at 90%.

Q. Who foots the bill for SMP?

A. As a small employer you can usually reclaim all the SMP costs involved. Your nanny should provide you with a Maternity Certificate (MATB1) for this purpose. This is issued 20 weeks before the baby's due date and your nanny can ask their doctor or midwife for it. You can receive a cheque for the lump sum of your nanny's maternity pay up front and Nannytax will help with this. We will also issue payslips for your nanny throughout the period of maternity leave, showing SMP paid. If you choose to pay the entire SMP due in a lump sum (by totalling the net wage on the payslips we provide) then it is advisable that you explain to your nanny that this payment is to last for the entire period of their maternity leave, and that they should not claim any additional benefit (i.e. social security) or obtain work elsewhere, until this period has ended.

Q. Is it reasonable to expect a part-time nanny to attend antenatal classes in her own time?

A. She is entitled to paid time off to attend appointments made on the advice of her midwife, health visitor or GP. Except for the first appointment she must be prepared to show the employer the appointment card. She may not be able to arrange appointments on the days of her choice in which case she must be allowed to attend and be paid.

Q. If the pregnant nanny is still in her probationary period and the employer are not happy with her as she has had several days off already, can they legally dismiss her?

A. If the sickness is related to her pregnancy then it would be unlawful to dismiss her and the employer could be at risk of a sex discrimination claim. The best approach here is to discuss with her the reasons for her absence, explain the importance of reliability and see how her attendance can be improved.

Q. Young children forget easily and with the new longer maternity leave many parents are concerned that their children will have forgotten their nanny when she returns a year later.

A. The Government have introduced 10 “Keeping in Touch Days” which means the nanny may work for up to 10 days without bringing her Maternity leave to an end or losing her SMP or MA. This is to enable her to keep in touch during her leave if she wishes to. They can be used for any work related activity which may be a children’s party or special event. Working for part of a day will count as one day’s work. Employers now can also make reasonable contact during Maternity leave, for example, to discuss the nanny’s return to work. Any work during maternity leave must be by agreement and neither the Employer nor the Employee can insist on it.

Q. Does the nanny qualify for holiday while she is on maternity leave?

A. Yes, holiday is accrued as normal, and must be paid out by the employer. The only situations when nanny wouldn't qualify for holiday pay are if she has explicitly told her employer that she does not wish to return to work following her maternity leave, or if she has been made redundant (although the employer has to be very careful if they wish to make her redundant).