Statutory Maternity, Paternity and Adoption Pay

Statutory Maternity Pay

The earliest you can start your Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) is 11 weeks before the Expected Week of Childbirth (EWC).

To be eligible for SMP you need to meet certain qualifying conditions. The fifteenth week before the EWC is the “qualifying week”. The EWC starts on the Sunday at the beginning of the week in which your baby is due.

How to find the fifteenth week before the EWC?

To work out the qualifying week you find the Sunday at the start of the EWC and count back 15 weeks. That is the first day of the qualifying week, which starts on a Sunday.

Who is eligible for Statutory Maternity Pay?

To be eligible for Statutory Maternity Pay, you must:

• Have at least 26 weeks’ continuous service by the end of the qualifying week
• Be employed in all or part of the qualifying week
• Have average weekly earnings of at least £123 (for the current tax year), before tax, in the eight weeks or two months before the end of the qualifying week. Your earnings can include overtime, commission, bonuses or other sums on which national insurance contributions are paid.
• If you have irregular pay dates from the same employer there is a more flexible means of calculating SMP which allows earnings to be looked at over a longer period than 8 weeks.

​Find out more about Maternity Benefits from Gov.uk.

​Agency workers, casual and zero hours workers and some freelance workers may qualify for SMP if they meet the qualifying conditions.

If you have doubts about your eligibility for SMP ask your employer to show you how your average weekly earnings have been worked out and contact the MU for advice.

If you do not qualify for Statutory Maternity Pay, you may qualify for Maternity Allowance.

How long does the Statutory Maternity Pay payment last?

SMP is payable for 39 weeks even if you decide to resign, or you are dismissed or made redundant. 

Once you have qualified for Statutory Maternity Pay you are entitled to receive it for the full 39 week period. You do not have to repay SMP if you decide not to return to work.

If you start work for a new employer during the 39 week SMP period, your SMP will stop, unless you were working for that employer in the 15th week before your baby was due.

How much is Statutory Maternity Pay?

SMP is paid at 90% of your average earnings for the first six weeks. The remaining 33 weeks are paid at £156.66 per week (for the current tax year) for 33 weeks, or 90% of average earnings if that is less.  

Some employers offer enhanced contractual maternity pay, so check your contract.

Working for more than one employer

Musicians can claim Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) from more than one job providing they meet the qualifying conditions for each job. You can start your maternity leave and/or SMP at different times for each job.

You can also work for up to ten paid Keeping in Touch days for each employer, at different times, and keep your SMP from your other employer.

If you only qualify for SMP from one employer, you can continue to work for the employer who does not pay you SMP, providing you were employed by that employer in the 15th week before your baby was due.

If you qualify for SMP for one job but not for a second job, for example, because your earnings are too low in your second job or it is self-employed work, you cannot claim Maternity Allowance for the second job.

If you have a second job for an employer who is not liable to pay Class 1 National Insurance contributions, such as voluntary work or self-employment, you can still get SMP and do voluntary work or self-employed work.

Remember, you can only claim Maternity Allowance if you do not qualify for any SMP.

Starting a new job

You cannot get SMP from your old employer if you start work for a new employer, unless you were employed by the new employer in the 15th week before your baby was due.

You must tell your old employer of the date you will be starting your new job so that they can stop your payments of SMP.

If you are resigning from your old job you should give the correct notice.

Statutory Paternity Pay

Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP) is paid by your employer for up to two weeks. SPP is paid at £151.97 per week (for this current tax year) or 90% of your average earnings if that is lower. 

Who is eligible for Statutory Paternity Pay?

You can get Statutory Paternity Pay if:

• You are the baby’s father or the husband/wife/partner of the mother or the main adopter and you are responsible for the baby’s upbringing
• You have been employed by your employer for 26 weeks by the 15th week before the baby is due or, if the baby is born before then, you would have worked for your employer for 26 weeks by the 15th week before the baby is due
• You are still employed by the same employer up to the day your child is born
• You have average weekly earnings of at least £156.66 (this current tax year), before tax, in the eight weeks or two months before the end of the qualifying week.

Some employers offer enhanced contractual paternity pay, so check your contract.

Statutory Adoption Pay

The qualifying conditions for statutory adoption pay and paternity pay are the same as those listed above for maternity and paternity pay.

The guidance pack on maternity, parental and adoption workplace rights was designed in conjunction with Maternity Action to provide musicians with information about your rights at work as set out under the Equality Act 2010.