Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Maternity leave definition

What does Maternity leave mean? Maternity leave is the protected period an employee takes from work in connection with pregnancy and childbirth, covering time before and after the birth. In Great Britain (England & Wales and Scotland) it is a statutory entitlement defined by legislation: up to 52 weeks’ statutory maternity leave comprising 26 weeks’ Ordinary Maternity Leave (OML) followed by 26 weeks’ Additional Maternity Leave (AML). A compulsory maternity leave period applies immediately after birth: at least two weeks (four weeks for factory workers) during which work is prohibited. Leave can start up to 11 weeks before the expected week of childbirth. On return,...

Returning from maternity leave: notice, same or suitable job, flexible working, discrimination, dismissal and redundancy (Great Britain)

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Practice notes

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This Practice Note

This Practice Note considers a woman’s entitlement to return to work after maternity leave under sections 71 and 73 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA 1996) and the Maternity and parental leave etc Regulations 1999 (MAPLE 1999), SI 1999/3312, as a matter of statutory right. Broadly speaking, where only ordinary maternity leave (OML) is taken, she is entitled to resume the ‘same job’ when that leave ends, unless that position is no longer available (see: Return from maternity leave and Return to same job, below). A woman who also takes a period of additional maternity leave (AML) is likewise entitled to return to her former role, unless it is not reasonably practicable for her to be permitted to do so (see: Qualified right to return, below). The right to return applies:

at the conclusion of AML, if no earlier return date has been notified, or
on a date properly notified to the employer as the employee’s intended return date

For further information, see: Return date, below. If the employee is denied her right to return to work after maternity leave, she will be treated as dismissed...

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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