Going Back to Work After Maternity Leave: Keeping in Touch Days, Return Dates and Flexible Working (Great Britain)

Planning the return to work is part of planning maternity leave, and a few practical rules can make it smoother: how much contact to keep during leave, how to change a return date, what job is waiting and how to ask for different hours. This guide sets out what Acas and GOV.UK say and covers England, Scotland and Wales, because GOV.UK notes that flexible working rules are different in Northern Ireland. It is general information rather than advice on any one employment contract.

Keeping in touch during leave

Acas says the employer and employee should agree, before maternity leave starts, how they will keep in touch, ideally in a way that is comfortable for the employee, such as email rather than phone calls. The employer must tell the employee about important changes that might affect them, including promotions or other job opportunities, training, redundancies and any reorganisation. It is good practice to let the employee decide how much contact they want and to remind them they do not have to work during maternity leave (Acas, “During maternity leave”).

Keeping in touch (KIT) days

An employee can have up to 10 keeping in touch days during maternity leave, which need the employer’s agreement. They are meant to help an employee stay in contact with the organisation, for example by joining training sessions or team meetings. Acas says the employee and employer should agree:

• whether the employee wants to work KIT days;
• how many days;
• what type of work will be done;
• how much will be paid.

Working part of a KIT day still counts as a full day. Acas warns that an employee cannot work more than 10 KIT days, because statutory maternity leave and pay will automatically end if they do. Pay should be agreed in advance, and the easiest option is normal pay for the day, though an employer must not pay less than the minimum wage. An employee taking shared parental leave might be able to take 20 additional days, called shared parental leave in touch (SPLIT) days, on top of the 10 maternity KIT days (Acas, “During maternity leave”).

Changing the return date

An employee who wants to return earlier or later than planned must tell the employer in writing, with at least eight weeks’ notice. The eight weeks is measured before the new date for an earlier return, or before the original date for a longer break. GOV.UK gives the same eight-week rule (GOV.UK, “Maternity pay and leave: Leave”). Our guide to planning maternity leave covers the start of leave and pay.

The right to return to the same job

Acas says employees are usually entitled to return to the same job. Where someone took 26 weeks or less, the right is to return to the same job. Where they took more than 26 weeks, the right is to return to the same job unless the employer has a genuine reason why that is not possible, in which case they have the right to a suitable alternative role. The right applies even if the person covering the job is doing it well. Any alternative cannot be worse than the previous job, and should have the same or similar pay, benefits, holiday leave and pay, location and seniority (Acas, “Returning to work”).

Acas also says an employer cannot make an employee redundant for taking maternity leave, or for making a statutory request for flexible working to care for their child. During maternity leave, employers must offer a suitable alternative vacancy in a redundancy situation, if there is one.

Asking for flexible working

Acas says employees have the statutory right to request flexible working from the first day of employment, and that employers should handle requests from returners in the same way as any other. The right applies to employees, and Acas notes that someone is not likely to be an employee if they are an agency worker, a casual worker or on a zero-hours contract. If a statutory request is made, the employer must accept it unless there is a genuine business reason not to, consult the employee before deciding unless the request is accepted in full, handle it reasonably in line with the Acas Code, and decide, including any appeal, within a maximum of two months (Acas, “The right to request”).

GOV.UK lists what a request can cover: the number of hours, the start and finish times, the days worked and where the work is done. It says the employee should write to the employer, and the application must include the date, a statement that it is a statutory request, details of the change and start date wanted, and whether and when an earlier application was made. An employee can make two applications in any 12-month period (GOV.UK, “Flexible working: Applying for flexible working”).

Employees are protected from unfair dismissal and detriment for making, or planning to make, a statutory request, according to Acas. Agreements made informally, without the statutory procedure, do not carry the same protection.

A simple planning timeline

• Before leave: agree how contact will work and whether KIT days are wanted.
• Several months before returning: decide whether the return date will change and give eight weeks’ written notice if so.
• If different hours are wanted: make a written statutory request in good time, since the decision can take up to two months.

Childcare often shapes these decisions, and our guide to choosing childcare covers the government help available in England.

The bottom line

Acas and GOV.UK set out clear steps for returning to work after maternity leave in England, Scotland and Wales. Up to 10 keeping in touch days can be worked by agreement, and more than that ends statutory leave and pay. Changing the return date needs at least eight weeks’ written notice. Employees are usually entitled to the same job, or a suitable alternative if more than 26 weeks were taken, and can make a statutory flexible working request from day one, which the employer must decide within two months.

Sources

• Acas, “During maternity leave”
• Acas, “Returning to work”
• Acas, “The right to request”
• GOV.UK, “Maternity pay and leave: Leave”
• GOV.UK, “Flexible working: Applying for flexible working”