I've been told there is no budget to extend my contract. This wasn't an issue for the last 3 extensions. Precedent has been set with 4 other expectant mothers prior to me, where an honorary contract is put in place for those 6 weeks allowing the person to claim full mat leave. This is confirmed by my union. Do they have to honour this? Or will I be out of a job 6 weeks before I'm due? They have also confirmed that my duties will be absorbed by another member of staff as the role is still required.
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A lot of this depends on how long you have worked and whether you are temping via an agency or employed directly on a temporary contract. As you are a member of a Union, can they not support you with this? Presumably you are paying for employment advice if you are with a Union, make sure you take full advantage of it.
Here is some info but not sure how relevant it is to your situation.....https://worksmart.org.uk/work-rights/atypical-workers/agency-workers/im-...
Hope that helps.
Hi Clive,
Thanj you for taking the time to reply. At the point that my contract ends I will be in direct employment with my employer for a period of 2 years. This is comprised of 3 periods of a rolling contract. My union have advised I will have "Protected Person" status. Although I can't find any reference to this online which relates to my specific scenario i.e contract ending 6 weeks prior to going on maternity leave. My employer has lead me to believe that they are under no obligation to me as the contract is temporary and can allow it to end on the said date with no obligation to maternity. As such, I'm left in somewhat of a limbo. My own line manager has told me she will ask the question on my behalf of senior managment, but to "be prepared for the answer". I can't get a straight answer from them either way. It's definitely not the note I want to spend my pregnancy on.
I think 'protected person' status means just rights as a worker as opposed to a temp as it protects you from certain things e.g. unlawful discrimination etc. It's not a term used by .gov.uk specifically. It may also mean that if you have 2 years service you should get protected rights like redundancy pay etc.
I would say, from the little I know, that it would be pretty difficult to prove they have treated you differently than the other maternity cases unless they are doing the same work and they are being extended at exactly the same time as you re being let go.
I still believe that the Union should be supporting you more in this but the .gov.uk website is your best reference point.
Hope all goes well for you.
Hi,
You can relate your story in this article online to get some more stats and information about maternity leave or pregnancy inconvenience: https://www.topchro.com/article/progress-over-life-why-motherhood-is-a-r...
Hope this may help to some extent.
Thanks!
