Can Salary Recovery Happen During Maternity Leave When Full Pay Is Given?

Dear All,

Can anybody update me on whether salary recovery on a loan/advance already paid can be made while the employee is on maternity leave and receiving full salary as per the Act?

Regards,

Yes, dear! You can deduct the EMI only during the said period. You would be contravening the rules under the Maternity Act if you don't pay her salary or deduct a part of the salary to which she is otherwise entitled. However, if you deduct the monthly EMI or deductions for the loan sanctioned by the company, then you can deduct the EMI amount ONLY. Hope this clarifies your doubt.

Santosh

Dear Santosh,

Thank you very much for your help. I have one more clarification. Can we deduct LOP during maternity leave with the agreement of the concerned employee? I am looking forward to your response.

Regards,

Hi Vijay,

How would you like to handle the deduction of LOP (Loss of Pay) when an employee is on maternity leave and is entitled to her regular pay? You can apply LOP after the completion of the maternity leave period. In what scenario does this LOP arise?

Regards,

What do you mean by LOP? Is it a loss of pay? For what reasons will you deduct? Censure or Non-Concurrence, you cannot deduct for any other thing!

Santosh

Maternity benefit means 12 weeks of leave. It is not really 12 weeks of wages. The manner of providing the benefit is stated as the money value of 12 weeks had she worked with the employer. Therefore, in order to arrive at such a money value, we take 12 weeks of wages. In the same manner, whatever she would earn had she worked shall be the maternity salary. This has to be paid in advance also. However, many firms pay it in the form of salary every month.

The Maternity Benefit Act does not specify that it should be paid without deductions. Similarly, the Payment of Wages Act, which regulates deductions from salary (section 7), is also silent in this respect. In fact, the deduction of EPF will maintain the continuity of service. For employees covered by the ESI Act, the question does not involve whether a deduction is to be made because an employee covered by ESI, the maternity benefit is paid by the ESI Corporation and not by the employer.

Regards, Madhu.T.K

Hi All!

I have one query regarding Maternity Leave (ML). After the lapse of ML, how long (number of days/months) can an employee avail an extension of her leave, which is obviously without pay? Is there any specific time period for extending Maternity Leave?

Regards,
Suchandra

In addition to maternity leave, a female employee is eligible for one month of paid leave for sickness resulting from and in continuation of her delivery.

Regards,

Madhu.T.K

Dear Suchandra,

A leave without pay due to extension of maternity leave is fine. This depends on the health of the lady and the company policy. At times, even a one-year LOP is taken in a sabbatical form (provided she is not employed anywhere else, an agreement is signed between her and the company).

Thanks,
Sonali

Thank you, Sonali, and others for the responses.

Do we need to keep any documents like a doctor's certificate citing her health reasons for the extension of maternity leave post-delivery?

Regards, Suchandra

Dear all,

I am working with a Group of Companies - one is FMCG, and the other is a Construction unit as an Executive-HR. The issue that I have identified is the high rate of attrition in this company. I have made efforts to retain the employees but have been unsuccessful so far. Please suggest to me how to improve employee retention.

Anindya

It is not clear for me about the salary payment during maternity leave. ESI is not deducted from my salary. My salary is Rs. 30,000. I need maternity leave of 6 months. Will I get salary at least for the first 3 months of maternity leave? What about the other 3 months if there is a loss of pay? Will my PF account be discontinued? Please clarify for me.

Regards,
Uma