Maternity Rights Factsheet

Maternity Leave

All employees automatically qualify for 12 months maternity leave regardless of length of service. This consists of 26 weeks’ Ordinary Maternity Leave (OML) and a further 26 weeks’ Additional Maternity Leave (AML).

There is a compulsory maternity leave (CML) period, of 2 weeks following the birth (4 weeks if the woman works in a factory or similar environment), during which employees are not allowed to return to work. To permit her to do so is a criminal offence. The CML period runs concurrently with OML.