In recent months, we’ve spent a lot of time dealing with issues that have arisen due to lack of communication during maternity leave. It’s easy to slip into an “out of sight, out of mind” mindset when someone goes on maternity leave.
However, as an employer, this can lead not only to a lot of bad feeling, but also expensive employment tribunals!
In this blog post, we’ll look at the legalities around communication during maternity leave and give you some tips on how to get it right.
What do you need to communicate to employees on maternity leave?
Employment law does place obligations on employers regarding what they MUST communicate to an employee when she is on maternity leave. Employers have a duty to keep employees on maternity leave informed about important changes that could affect their role or employment.
This includes things like:
- Organisational restructures
- Redundancies
- Promotion opportunities
- Pay reviews
- Any major changes to the team or their responsibilities
Getting this wrong can be very expensive. In Smith v Greatwell Homes Ltd (2023), the employer failed to notify an employee on maternity leave about an internal restructuring and new job opportunities. The tribunal found this to be maternity discrimination, and she was awarded £50,000.
What about social events?
Social events and maternity leave is something that can very often cause issues.
Employers, with the best of intentions, typically think “X has just had a baby. She won’t want to come out with us!”. And do you know what? She may very well not want to come out with you.
However, let that be her decision!
If your team is going out for lunch, holding a team-building day, or planning the Christmas party, don’t forget to invite employees on maternity leave. Be clear that they are not under any obligation to attend but make sure they feel included.
There’s case law on this point too. In Catriona Howie v Holloways of Ludlow Design & Build Ltd, the tribunal found that failing to invite an employee on maternity leave to the company’s informal Christmas drinks was discriminatory. There were also other things that went wrong in this case (including failure to keep the employee up-do-date on the financial state of the business and the fact that it could lead to redundancy), but the judge was clear that excluding Howie from the Christmas drinks was maternity discrimination.
What about company wide communications?
Employers can often think “The employee still has access to her emails, so she’ll see company updates so that’s all OK”.
Whilst we would always recommend that the employee retains access to her emails, you should not assume that she will be checking them.
Typically, we suggest that employers agree upfront how company updates will be handled. Many companies do not want company updates to be sent to personal email addresses for security/confidentiality reasons and that is fine. We suggest that you agree that, when a company update goes out, the employee on maternity leave will receive an email to her personal email address confirming that the update is available. She can then decide for herself whether she wants to take a look at her work email.
A word of caution on this one. If you put something in a company update that has an impact on the role of an individual on maternity leave, you cannot assume that they are going to read the update and that you have therefore fulfilled your legal duty. Any change that impacts the employee needs to be communicated to her directly and clearly.
Is there any time when I should not contact the employee whilst she’s on maternity leave?
Whilst employers need to stay in touch, you still need to be respectful of the employee.
We would always recommend not contacting an employee, except to congratulate them on their new addition, during the first two weeks after they have given birth. This is called the compulsory leave period and, unless it is completely unavoidable, you should leave employees alone during this time.
Additionally, if you know that mother or baby are unwell, that is not going to be the time to reach out to give updates etc. To be legally safe, it would be sensible to drop some communication confirming that you aren’t going to contact them about anything work related but explain they can reach out whenever they are ready and you will update them on anything they need to know.
In cases where you are not going to be able to update for a little while, do keep a list of everything you need to share when the employee is ready.
How do I avoid issues?
The very best thing that you can do is agree upfront what communication the employee would like to receive during their maternity leave.
We recommend to our clients that they discuss this with the employee. Then, add the agreement to the letter that goes to the employee which sets out all the arrangements for her maternity leave and pay.
The things we would suggest you discuss are:
- How would they prefer to be contacted? (Email, phone, WhatsApp?)
- How often do they want to hear from you?
- Are there any types of updates you’d like to opt out of (or definitely want)?
- Do note, they cannot opt out of the communications that you are legally obliged to have with them, and you should make this clear.
- How will company wide emails be handled? Will you email a personal address confirming that the update is available or something else?
Some dos and don’ts to help you avoid issues with communications during maternity
Agree on how and when to stay in touch before leave begins.
Make a note of what you’ve agreed and make sure that this is shared with all relevant people i.e. the line manager.
Don’t forget employees on leave when sharing news or organising events.
Everyone’s maternity leave looks different—adapt your approach accordingly.
Communicating with employees on maternity leave doesn’t have to be complicated. If you’re clear and agree an approach up front then you’ll likely navigate this with ease. The most important thing to remember? That your employee who is on maternity leave is still your employee and part of your team. Don’t let it be “out of sight, out of mind”.