Negotiating on surrogacy leave

Legal rights to time off and pay are very restricted for those intending to use a surrogacy arrangement and are identified above. Reps supporting members who are intending to use a surrogate mother should check their member’s employment contract to see if they have any additional rights or benefits when using a surrogacy arrangement.

To get as much paid time off as possible, reps can advise workers with annual leave to ask the employer how much annual leave can be taken at once. If annual leave is being saved up by the member, checks can be made to see if there are any restrictions on how much annual leave can be accrued and over which dates.

Where paid time off cannot be negotiated, reps can try to secure unpaid leave with the employer while ensuring that members’ jobs are protected during this period.

The Royal Bank of Scotland allows employees to take up to 52 weeks’ surrogacy leave. Employees with between 26 and 52 weeks’ service are entitled to receive surrogacy pay at different rates dependent on their level of service.

From 1 October 2014, a person entering into a surrogacy arrangement is entitled to an unpaid right to attend up to two antenatal appointments under the Children and Families Act 2014.