Pregnancy and Redundancy
Printed from www.survivingredundancy.ie Copyright © 2012
- The timing of your redundancy is critical. If you are made redundant within 16 weeks of the due date, you will get 6 months Maternity Benefit and Jobseekers Benefit when the Maternity Benefit is finished.
- Maternity benefit is tax-free income. Jobseekers Benefit is taxable income.
- Your employer cannot give you formal notice of redundancy while you are on maternity leave. So if you think redundancies might be announced, you might want to go on maternity leave earlier than planned. This would be especially beneficial if the 10 months leave brought you over the two years service required to qualify for statutory redundancy.
Maternity Benefit
Maternity Benefit of between €230 and €280 per week is paid for 6 months. It is not taxable. It is paid directly to your bank account.
Jobseekers Benefit is between €91 and €240 and is payable for up to 12 months. It is taxable. You have to sign on every week.
So if you are going to be made redundant, you want to make sure that you qualify for maternity benefit.
To qualify for Maternity Benefit, you need the following PRSI contributions
- At least 39 weeks PRSI paid in the 12-month period before the first day of your maternity leave
Or
- At least 39 weeks PRSI paid since first starting work and at least 39 weeks PRSI paid or credited in the relevant tax year or in the tax year immediately before the relevant tax year. For example, if you are going on maternity leave in 2009, the relevant tax year is 2007.
Or
- At least 26 weeks PRSI paid in the relevant tax year and at least 26 weeks PRSI paid in the tax year immediately before the relevant tax year. For example, if you are going on maternity leave in 2009, the relevant tax year is 2007 and the year before that is 2006
Can I be made redundant while pregnant?
Yes. But an employer should not select you for redundancy because you are pregnant.
Can I be made redundant while on maternity leave?
Your employer is not allowed to give you formal notice of redundancy while you are on maternity leave or extended maternity leave.
On your return from maternity leave, your employer will give you formal notice and your date of redundancy will be the date that the notice expires. This would be minimum notice set out in the Redundancy Acts or the notice period set out in your contract if that is higher.
Your employer can and should inform you that you will be made redundant on your return.
You should probably take the maximum extended maternity leave as you will continue to accrue holiday pay and the statutory redundancy will be higher as your length of service will be higher.
I will be made redundant as soon as I return from maternity leave. Will I get Jobseekers Benefit?
Yes.
If I am made redundant before I go on maternity leave, will I get maternity benefit?
If you are made redundant within 16 weeks, of the end of the week your baby is due, you will get maternity benefit. MB is paid from the day after your P45
| Baby Due | Monday 21 December |
| Last day of the week | Friday 25 December |
| Last day to qualify for MB | Monday 7 September |
So if you work up until 7th September, you will get 6 months Maternity Benefit from then.
If I don't qualify for maternity benefit, can I claim Jobseekers Benefit?
Yes, if you are available and looking for work, and meet the other qualifying criteria, you will get Jobseekers Benefit. From the Department of Social Welfare's website:
"Pregnancy is not an illness and in the absence of any complications of pregnancy or other illness, a pregnant woman (who may not be entitled to Maternity Benefit) satisfies the condition of being capable of work for the purpose of Jobseeker's Benefit throughout her pregnancy and in the period following the birth. She will also satisfy the availability condition unless there are other factors which could call her general availability for work into question. She must, however, continue to look for work throughout her pregnancy and in the period after the birth of her child in order to satisfy the condition of genuinely seeking work. On an administrative basis a woman will not normally be requested to prove that she is genuinely seeking work in the 4 weeks immediately before the expected date of birth of her child or in the 8 week period following the birth. She will not be required to attend at the Local Office for signing purpose during this period provided she tells the Local Office of her pregnancy."
My employer pays maternity pay - can he avoid this by making me redundant before I go on maternity leave?
Yes. But your employer would have to be very careful that you were not selected for redundancy because you were pregnant.
