Statutory Parental Pay
In the UK there are a number of statutory parental leave rights which include some form of pay:
- Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) – up to 39 weeks with 6 weeks of higher entitlement
- Statutory Adoption Pay (SAP – similar to SMP
- Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) – generally the sharing of any stopped right to 33 SMP
- Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP)- 2 weeks which can be split into separate weeks
- Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay (SPBP) – 2 weeks
- Statutory Neonatal Pay – introduced from April 2925 for up to 12 weeks
A weeks a week
All of these statutory payments are paid as a week values for the duration of 7 days.
The employee can choose which day a week commences by selecting their statutory payment start point,
What’s Sunday got to do with it?
Please note that statutory pay rate changes for the annual uplift of a week always commence for weeks starting on a Sunday (usually the first Sunday in April).
When SMP was first introduced, all weeks started on Sunday. For some time the employee has had the right to choose any-day starts.
What happens if you work during parental leave?
So the business needs some urgent help and calls upon the individual on parental leave to come in or remotely do some work, is that OK?
If the employee on paid statutory leave does any work during that payment week, they would ordinarily forfeit the right to the statutory payment for that week – the payment stops and there is no right to the statutory payment.
Historically this was a problem and may have alienated the employee from working and the workforce, so concessions were introduced with limits.
Keeping In Touch (KIT) days
To prevent someone loosing a weeks SMP or SAP, a ten day allowed working allowance was introduced. This is 10 calendar days when the parent in receipt of statutory payments could undertake some work without loosing their statutory payment.
If an 11th day is worked, SMP, SAP ends that week with no statutory payments.
Shared Parental Leave In Touch (SPLIT) days
As an additional concession introduced with ShPP, the concept of 20 SPLIT days was introduced. ShPP does not need to be taken in a single block, SPLIT days can be taken by both parents to undertake 20 seperate calendars of some work without loosing their entitlement to ShPP for that week.
If a 21st day is worked then ShPP payment for that week stops.
A parent could utilise up to 10 KIT days and then change to shared parental leave and pay to benefit from a further 20 SPLIT days.
So how much pay should I get for a KIT or SPLIT days work?
Some may say that a days pay is due because it has used one of the days, however the use of a KIT or SPLIT day is to prevent disturbance to the weekly statutory payment, not to define the terms of pay for work which continues under contract.
The pay for these In Touch days is by mutual agreement between employee and employer and should be agreed in advance. There is a legal obligation to ensure that the amount of payment for the work time meets or exceeds the age related National Minimum or National Living Wage for the hours actually worked.
Surprisingly, the payment due for work in that week can be offset against anticipated statutory payment for that week. So if you work a KIT or SPLIT day during your parental pay period, your employer is entitled – but not obliged – to offset any statutory payment that you were due to receive that week by the value of the contractual pay earned that week.
It is unlawful for an employer to treat anyone unfavourably, to subject you to a detriment or dismiss for working a KIT or SPLIT day or for not agreeing to work a KIT or SPLIT day.
PAYadvice.UK 1/12/2024