Maternity leave and sick pay

A woman absent before or after maternity leave with a pregnancy-related illness is entitled to the same contractual rate of sick pay as any male or non-pregnant employee (North Western Health Board v McKenna ([2005] IRLR 895).

A woman who falls sick or is injured while on maternity leave is not entitled to statutory or contractual sick pay for the period of that illness or injury (see Chapter 7: Occupational sick pay).

If a woman is unable to return to work at the end of maternity leave, the length of her sickness absence should be calculated from the date she was due to return (Kwik Save v Greaves [1998] IRLR 245).