Navigating Employee Performance Issues During Maternity Leave: What Should HR Do Next?

Employee Performance and Maternity Leave Situation

I am facing the circumstances mentioned below in my company. A female employee joined us on 19th May 2016. Her pregnancy is due on 15th December 2016. She didn't inform the HR department about this.

By accident, she mentioned that she is 4 months pregnant. As she was in a probation period for 6 months, the management team takes feedback from every employee serving their probation.

After receiving feedback from her seniors, we found out that her performance was not up to the mark as expected. Her rating was below average. In this context, we informed her that she needs to improve her performance as the project got delayed due to the dependency on her work.

After receiving the feedback, she continued her work as before. The management team had a discussion with her, emphasizing that the company is prepared to cooperate with her in every way. That's why management decided to provide her with maternity coverage, considering her situation, even though she had recently joined us.

In November, her supervisor informed us that we cannot continue with her as there has been no improvement in her performance. We need to reassign her project to other colleagues.

HR requested her to resign, but she sent an email requesting maternity leave for 3 months.

Now, the situation is as follows: the company is providing her with 3 months' salary, but what should we do next?

Should she return or not? What documents should we request?

Kindly reply to me as soon as possible.

Waiting for your reply, team.

Dear Swati,

Did management give any assurance to her about maternity leave?

Performance and maternity leave are two different issues. In case her performance is not up to mark and she is still on probation, then dismiss her provided you have not already assured her of maternity leave in writing - even by email.

Regards,
Col. Rathi

Maternity Benefit and Legal Rights

Maternity benefit is her right. If you dismiss her when she has already informed you about her pregnancy, she can go to court and get you prosecuted. The law does not state that she has to inform you about her pregnancy when joining. It is assumed that you are an ethical employer who complies with the social security laws. You cannot hold this against her.

Most supervisors do not want absenteeism due to maternity issues, as the period is long, and employees may take leave even after the maternity period to care for the newborn. Hence, supervisors and management often raise performance issues. The labor department and the courts are aware of this alibi. Therefore, counsel the supervisor on these issues and grant her the maternity benefit.

Regards

Thanks for your valuable suggestion. But it's not the issue. The company is giving her all maternity benefits.

Query arises: what should be the course of action if management doesn't want her to continue because of her performance (not up to the mark) in the past and sometimes attitude problem also when she will come back to join. What will be the best way for processing this kind of issue?

I also want to highlight one point here. When she left, she was in the probation period.

One thing is very clear: this is her maternity benefit period. The respected lady cannot be terminated on performance grounds at this moment as today is December 14, 2016, and her Expected Due Date (EDD) is December 15, 2016. Please obtain performance feedback from the Head of Department (HOD) and prepare documents indicating that during her probation period, her performance was not found satisfactory.

Since she was scheduled for confirmation on November 18, 2016, your company's HR department should issue a letter extending her probation period until March 31, 2017. This seems to be an oversight from the HR side, in my opinion. Upon her return from maternity leave, possibly in February 2017, your HR head should issue the mentioned letter. This approach will provide her with sufficient time to demonstrate improvement in her performance. If the same behavior and performance issues persist, you can consider terminating her employment either before or by the end of the probation period in February-March 2017.

Regards,

I fully agree with RDS Yadav's decision to extend her probation period for another 6 months. Upon her joining, if you do not see any improvement in her behavior or performance, you have the full right to terminate her service.