LRD guides and handbook May 2019

Law at Work 2019 - the trade union guide to employment law

Chapter 9

Key elements of statutory maternity leave 





[ch 9: page 306]

Statutory maternity leave lasts for 52 weeks, as follows: 





Compulsory maternity leave: the first two weeks (four weeks in the case of factory workers) from birth. A woman who gives birth must take this leave;





Ordinary maternity leave (OML): the first 26 weeks — includes the two compulsory weeks;



Additional maternity leave (AML): a further period of 26 weeks which follows immediately after the OML.