GRAZIA
Many women are stuck in jobs they’ve outgrown because moving companies means they might miss out on maternity benefits in the future, says Sophie Wilkinson
‘I DON’T FEEL SAD, just frustrated and angry,’ says Helen * , 36, a communications worker from Kent. ‘Not angry at my job, more the fact I’m a woman and I have to think this way.’
Helen is just one of many women stuck in the so-called ‘prenatal pause’ – where women in their mid to late thirties feel obliged to stay in unsatisfying jobs because, with the prospect of trying to conceive around the corner, they can’t risk a move that would affect their maternity leave package. ‘In theory, I could move and earn a lot more money somewhere else,’ she says, ‘but it’s not an option for me really to wait another year to start trying.’
We’ve all heard of the motherhood penalty affecting women’s pay and perceived competence at work. Well, the prenatal pause stalls women’s careers before they even start trying to have children.
Every employer is legally required to give a mother-to-be up to 52 weeks’ maternity leave regardless of how long they have been employed. When it comes to pay, it’s more complicated. If you have worked for your employer continuously for at least 26 weeks, they must pay statutory maternity pay (SMP) for 39 weeks, consisting of 90% of your average weekly earnings (before tax) for the first six weeks, followed by £184.03 or 90% of your average weekly earnings
(whichever is lower) for the next 33 weeks. (Those ineligible for SMP can apply for Maternity Allowance, which is to £184.03 a week or 90% of average weekly earnings, whichever is less, for up to 39 weeks.)
Many companies, however, offer ‘enhanced maternity pay’, which can ensure new mothers are better off financially, sometimes considerably so (take Jaguar LandRover, which offers 52 weeks on full pay, or Paypal, which gives nine months). According to a YouGov report, 44% of firms offer some form of enhanced maternity pay.
The enhanced amount, and the length of service required for eligibility, varies company to company (it can require serivce of up to three years in some organisations). There are also some employers who require you to repay part or all of the enhanced amount if you do not return to work, or resign shortly after maternity leave. In a cost of living crisis, these differences in policies can have a significant impact on a woman’s finances and quality of life.
Priya * , 35, who works in tech, wants to leave her job because ‘lots has changed and I’m keen to get out’, however, the enhanced maternity pay her company offers would mean she’d be £14,000 better off than with SMP. The problem for women like Priya is that when job-hunting, adverts for vacancies will detail employee benefits such as cycle schemes or free lunches, b
