Navigating Maternity Leave: Can We Cancel a Job Offer After Acceptance?

I am working in an IT company. My company has sent an offer letter to a girl, and she accepted it. However, she mentioned that she is four months pregnant and plans to join the company from January 15th. After starting, she will require maternity leave starting from the end of March. She is inquiring whether the leave will be paid or unpaid. Also, she is asking if we can cancel her appointment. Please guide me on this matter.

Thank you.

Offer Cancellation Due to Maternity Leave

Cancelling the offer solely because of maternity leave is unfair. Before offering the job, you have to verify those things. From your company's point of view, it will not be profitable because she might be in the training period after joining, and then she will go on maternity leave.

The company has the right to cancel the offer before joining, which may not be a big deal for you. However, the reason given is quite sensitive. Therefore, it is suggested to keep her offer on hold for now. Please convey this information to her and help her understand the situation.

Thank you.

I second Nijanthan C. If you have already offered her the job and she has accepted it, then it would be unfair to cancel it. What is the stance of the HOD/interviewer?

Last but not least, you can cancel the offer made to her by stating that you cannot hold her joining in January 2015 as you need to hire a person for immediate joining.

Thank you for your message. Regarding the leave for this case, please clarify if it will be paid or unpaid. The employee will be joining on January 5, 2015, and intends to take leave from March 20, 2015.

Regards,
Rahul

If she works for at least 80 days in the 12 months immediately preceding the date of her expected delivery, she is eligible for Maternity Benefits.

As per the Maternity Benefit Act of 1961, no woman shall be entitled to maternity benefits unless she has actually worked in an establishment of the employer from whom she is claiming maternity benefits for a period of not less than one hundred and sixty days in the twelve months immediately preceding the date of her expected delivery.

May this information be of help to you.

Regards,
Anurag

If she works for 80 days after joining, she is entitled to 12 weeks of maternity leave. If she has not revealed this fact at the time of the interview, you may cancel the offer letter. Furthermore, it is up to your organization to decide whether you can handle the workload in her absence for 12 weeks. Based on this, you may make a decision. The 12 weeks of leave will be paid.

Thank you.

As per the Maternity Benefit Act 1961, no woman shall be entitled to maternity benefits unless she has actually worked in an establishment of the employer from whom she claims maternity benefits for a period of not less than one hundred and sixty days in the twelve months immediately preceding the date of her expected delivery.

Maybe it helps you.

Regards,
Rahul

Dear Anurag, please share any amendments regarding the requirement of 160 days in the preceding 12 months instead of 80 days to help me update myself.

Sensitive Issues in Employment

It is a sensitive issue. It can crop up as gender discrimination or discrimination towards pregnant women.

The woman employee is eligible for maternity leave if she has worked in the establishment for 80 days before the expected date of delivery.

It is actually 80 days, not 120 days in the twelve months immediately preceding the expected delivery date, and the female employee is entitled to all benefits, including paid leave.

Regards,
AKS

Here are some thoughts:

1. You can issue a letter deferring her joining date to March or April 2015 as per your organization's convenience. This way, you can hire someone now who can join sooner, and at the same time, account for any attrition which will surely happen between now and March 2015.

2. There shouldn't be a problem withdrawing the offer, provided you can prove that the candidate did not disclose this required information at the time of the interview. There should be some declaration format where the candidate has signed off saying that all information shared is true and correct. Yes, it would be discrimination in a minor form; however, the organization is not a charity. Take legal counsel before going down this path.

3. In this situation you shared, she is not going to be entitled to ML anyway. So let her join, provide basic induction, team assignment, and let her work from home at 50% of the offered salary. That way, both the employee and the organization will gain.

Make sure you have taken all approvals in writing before you communicate with the employee.

All the best.

Regards,

If she has been working in your organization for more than 80 days, then she is eligible for maternity leave. If she hasn't spent 80 days yet, it is her responsibility to reveal this fact during the interview. Moreover, if she hasn't done so, you can offer her unpaid leave. Canceling the offer letter is not the right thing to do based on maternity reasons, especially since she has already joined your company.

In this situation, considering her responsibilities, the right course of action would be to grant her leave without remuneration.

The responsibility of the candidate in communicating her pregnancy to the prospective employer cannot be negated before the interview process. Generally, companies have no problem abiding by the leave norms entitlement for a female employee. In this case, we must understand that there are more facts unknown to the forum before we become judgmental and blame the company alone.

Take care,

Sourav Mukherjee

Pregnancy and Employment: A Guide for HR

Pregnancy is neither a disease nor misconduct, nor is it a ground for termination or disqualification. HR should act responsibly and educate the employer on these matters.

The establishment should not discriminate, as doing so could invite serious consequences.

I am working in an IT company. My company has sent an offer letter to a girl, she accepted it but she told us that she is four months pregnant. She will join the company on January 15 and will require maternity leave from the end of March. She is inquiring whether the leave will be paid or unpaid and if her appointment can be canceled. Please guide me. Thanks.

Understanding Maternity Leave Eligibility

As per the Maternity Act, maternity leave is applicable when a female employee conceives after joining the organization. In this case, she has only accepted the offer letter but has not yet joined, and she was already pregnant before receiving the job offer; therefore, she is not entitled to any maternity leave.

Steps to Consider

• Legally, you can cancel the appointment as she did not disclose her pregnancy, which would prevent her from joining the organization.
• You may offer her a fresh appointment after her maternity leave is over if she is willing to join the organization.

Regards

Mr. Tyagi,

The query is that the employee has already informed the employer that she is 4 months pregnant and that she will be going on maternity leave; she has not hidden the fact of her pregnancy.

Please confirm if the 80 days include leaves, offs, and holidays, or if only present days will be counted.

Company Responsibility Towards Pregnant Employees

The issue here is not with the candidate. At least she was forthright in communicating her pregnancy. It is the company that is in a hesitant mood just for the sake of saving 12 weeks' pay, which is a social responsibility. She is in motherhood; treat her properly.

Regards,
Pon

Probation Period and Maternity Leave Considerations

The simple facts here are:

• Every company has a probation period, and 80% of companies do not provide any leaves during the probation period.

• As per the Maternity Benefit Act of 1961, she has to work in that company for a specific period of time to avail the maternity benefit, which is definitely more than 6 months.

• Nine out of ten companies operate on the profit maximization concept, where there is very little scope for emotions nowadays. Therefore, the majority of companies will not allow her paid leaves and will either ask her to leave or inform her about Leave Without Pay (LWP).

Hence, maybe I am a bit harsh being an HR, but canceling the offer letter is the step taken because it's the need of the time. Also, they have not given her the appointment letter, and there is a clause in the HR manual or documents that the company holds the right to cancel the offer letter.

Regards,
Amol H.
HR