REWARD INSIGHT
Employees with premature or sick babies
Danny Done, managing director at Portfolio Payroll, reviews some of the proposals
F ollowing attention being brought to this area by several campaign groups and a private members’ Bill, the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) have now released guidance on supporting working parents who have a premature or sick baby. With over 95,000 premature or sick babies born each year in the UK, many employers are likely to employ a parent in these circumstances. Statutory maternity leave is available to employees for a period of 52 weeks. The earliest leave can normally begin is eleven weeks before the expected week of childbirth (EWC), but if the baby is born early the leave automatically starts the day after birth. There is no extension to the overall leave, and the time the mother gets to bond with their child is reduced where the premature or sick baby is required to stay in hospital for a number of these weeks. There are also circumstances where the employee is off work with a pregnancy- related illness in the four weeks before their EWC. Their maternity leave starts automatically but, dependent on their illness, the employee may not be able to notify her employer that she has given birth or provide the correct documents. The government had been considering whether to make legislative changes to provide parents, particularly mothers, with a better opportunity to spend time with a premature child. One line of thought was to increase the length of maternity leave so that it would still provide mothers with a maximum of twelve months’ leave at home with their baby once hospitalisation had ended. However, this has not, as yet, been pursued.
In the absence of legislative change, ACAS now provides employers with guidance on best to manage employees who have ‘pre- term’ births or ‘full-term’ births where the baby is sick. A pre-term birth, or premature birth, is one which occurs before 37 weeks’ gestation. Though premature babies are generally more prone to illness, ACAS also brings babies born at full-term but who are ill into the scope of its guidance. This could include babies who have jaundice, an infection or those born with a condition which requires urgent or significant medical attention. To support employees with premature or sick babies, employers can consider the following areas. ● Sensitive communication with the employee – Most companies will send their congratulations on the birth of a child; however, this may not be appropriate where the baby is ill. Instead, other methods of acknowledging the birth may be more sensitive such as a card or flowers to let the employee know the company is thinking of them. ● Appropriate disclosure of information to the employee’s colleagues – It is advisable to get the consent of the employee before informing any colleagues of the circumstances of the employee’s baby and it may be best to wait for news of release from hospital before making any company- or department-wide announcement. ● The flexibility around statutory leave – Paternity leave for fathers or the partner of the mother can be taken within eight weeks of the birth, or the due date, so they may choose to take this leave once the baby is
released from hospital. The employer can also remind their staff about the right to take parental leave or agree some other form of leave in the exceptional circumstances. ● The employee’s return to work – If the baby is still ill when the employee returns to work it will be difficult for any employee both from both an emotional and practical perspective. The parents may require ongoing time off to attend hospital appointments or medical check-ups. The employer may be able to agree with the employee that they can take unpaid time off or annual leave to cover these periods. ● Flexible working – Employees who are eligible to make a statutory request may wish to do so in which case employers should deal with it in a reasonable manner and within a reasonable timeframe. However, due to the circumstances, an expedited procedure should be considered. Alternatively, employees may wish to agree a change on an informal basis and employers should consider permitting this. Employers may want to consider extending the scope of requests to employees who do not have the statutory right to make a request because they do not have 26 weeks’ service, or because they have made a request within the previous twelve months. Agreeing a statutory flexible working request creates a permanent change to the employee’s contract of employment unless it is clear that both parties are agreeing to a temporary change. Both formal and informal arrangements should be documented in writing to ensure both parties are clear on the arrangements including start and end dates in the case of a temporary arrangement. This is a difficult and sensitive issue for all parties involved; however, employers can take steps to ensure their employee feels supported during this time. n
...many employers are likely to employ a parent in these circumstances
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| Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward | November 2017 | Issue 35
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