Hey girlies

Stressed and panicky would be a huge understatement right now.
I had sorted my mat leave back in August (I couldn't work out the hand book so waited for them to tell me my entitlement)
They told me I would get full pay for x-amount of weeks, then half pay + SMP for x-amount of weeks then drop down to basic SMP for the remaining time... and made me sign a form promising to return to work or pay back the extra.

I noticed my pay last month was a little lower then normal... I thought this was because mat leave is worked out in weeks or something.... Anyway this month I have just got the basic SMP.... So I had to ring payroll.... Turns out I am not entitled to this at all.....

Spend most of the weekend finding out the confirmation letter from HR, (spent all Friday night turning the house upside down... for the letter to be in the last place I looked!!!) and it is there in black and white what they had agreed...

I feel so ill and sick at the thought that they have made a mistake. My whole budget was based around their confirmation of my mat leave.... So I wont have any money at all till I go back to work.

I have emailed my work scanned copy of the letter and form agreeing to return to work by x-date.... I am scared Sh***less right now. (I think we could cope..... but we would have to live on barely anything......
I am kicking myself... I had planned to be careful with money so when did dropped down to SMP we would cope....
So thinking I was fine for x-amount of months I relaxed on spending a little over x-mas, had the odd treat and been spending a little on ethan (thinking we had the money)

Dunno how to cope till they get back to me... I am quick to cry.... Just when I started feeling better from the c-section....

I just want to cry and not stop (when I did have a little cry yesterday... well started sobbing my heart out... ethan must have found it funny and started smiling at me.... reminded me what important...)

E x

Hi Honey,

Sorry to hear that they have proper f**ked things up for you!! You would think a HR dept would know what they were doing! I have just asked my hubby about this as he works in that side of things and he says that the company policy will over rule the letter sent to you and it can do so legally, this is probably not what you want to hear. I would kick up a fuss woth them though as it is really wrong sending a letter stating your entitled to something when you were not, everyone has to budget when they suddenly drop wages on maternity leave.

Sending lots of hugs
B xx

How long have you worked there?

I would be up sh*t creek if I was only getting SMP, so i can understand your panic. Have you got the handbook so you can maybe try and work your entitlement out yourself?

Oh my god that is terrible hun!!! Sounds like someone has made a monumental cock up :x I would be livid (as well as very upset/worried), someone needs to put this right as it's completely unacceptable especially as you have it in writing. Let us know how it turns out, thinking of you, last thing you need to be worrying about/dealing with.

Are you a teacher?? reason I ask is I am and your maternity package sounds very similar to mine.

xxx

Hi hun

So sorry to hear about your work messing your money up, I would be livid. I have a very quick and foul temper so someone would be suffering in HR if they had done this to me. All I get is SMP (got the standard 90% for first 6 weeks but down to SMP now) so I knew what I would be getting straight away as my employer doesn't offer anything more, but as I don't plan to return to work anyway I would have had it all to pay back if I got more.

Do you claim tax credits? only asking cos if you are only receiving SMP now then it is worth working out how much wages (smp)you will receive until end of April and the amount of credits you receive will increase. I know it might not be by as much as you are losing, but it may be enough to make things a bit more 'comfortable' financially. When we had Daniel our weekly tax credits doubled, which has helped a lot and bumped our income back up to roughly what we were getting before I came on Mat Leave.

Not really sure what else to advise hun, just try not to let it get you too upset (easier said than done I know).

Sam
xxxxx

Edited to add: if you aren't claiming tax credits then it may also be worth applying for them.

Thanks for your support ladies.

I have to be very careful what I say, (not a teacher as this is a public forum.... Its not to hard for people I work with to work out who I am....

Not heard back yet,,, dunno if good sign or not.

I have been taking advice... Although not in any union myself I have a contact in a very high place in this area (so endless advice... even if they can actually be seen to help me!)

I know they dont have to honour what been agreed... one reason from the second i have found out I have been Sh**ing myself.
I believe the problem lies with when I should have started and when I actually did (my employers delayed my start date)


I wont be taking this laying down... I have to wait with what they say...

Let you know the overall outcome.... Thanks again for support.... you ladies make things brighter.

I haven't applied for tax credits yet... (was on my list to do) Will get my act together... (may even get cabs help with filling it in.... )

Hey hun. Hows things going? Have you heard anything yet?

As if having a newborn isn't stressful enough without work screwing up then taking their time to fix their mistake!

Hope you're ok!
xxx

wish was good news.... but nope... the worse.

They send me a letter confirming what entitled to and told me to enjoy the rest of my pregnany...... standard letter with a basic apoligy at the start,,, (copy and pasted)

So taking action agaist them (mainly for how they have dealt with things, plus some other issues.) gonna give them a major kick if they think they have got of scotts free.

So major stressing (effecting my milk supply... so baby not taking to boob at all at the moment ... so another upset)

We will cope... just all up in air at the moment and not got the time to put things in motion yet

Hey hun,

Might not help much but have you applied for Working Tax Credit yet? I know you have to do it on your earnings for 09/10 but when it comes through, ring them up and explain that your circumstances have changed, give them your new earnings with maternity pay etc and then they'll recalculate it on that meaning that you should get more.

xxx

OMG sorry only just read this Love4pip, what a bloody nightmare.... You must definitely take this further, this is a huge error on their part! Maybe go to Citizens Advice?! XX

Gonna get working tax credit sorted this week... I hope.

Finding hard to get things sorted at the moment... Ethan has had a bad week (I think he has picked upon my stress)

Spend today making it more cheerful for him...

Hope get everything I need to write up and emailed/mailed this weekend.... so can start the ball rolling.

At the moment trying not to think to much... already gave myself a panic attack... not keen to do that again (bloody scared myself silly didn't I)

Thanks ladies... does help to mindlessly rant on here at times

Oh no that's dreadful for you so not what you need, I got stressy just coz I didn't take tax or ni into account when I got told my smp so cocks your budget right up!!
Have lots of cuddles with ethan (and hubby) x