Money worries
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Work
You may be worried about losing your job or perhaps you have recently become unemployed. Know your rights and the financial help available.
Being made redundant while on maternity leave
At the end of your maternity leave, you have the right to return to your original job. If that job no longer exists, you can be offered suitable, alternative work if available. If there is no suitable alternative, you may be entitled to redundancy pay.
Redundancy pay
You may be made redundant if, say, your employer no longer needs your type of work or is cutting costs, relocating or going out of business.
Provided you have worked for your employer for at least two years, you are entitled to statutory redundancy pay, which is a tax-free lump sum. Time spent on maternity or paternity leave counts as working. You should get at least a minimum amount based on how long you have been with your employer, your age and your pay up to £350 a week (increasing to £380 a week from October 2009). Some employers have a more generous redundancy pay scheme. You should get redundancy pay automatically without having to claim it.
For information and help regarding any aspect of your employment rights, talk to your employer, your trade union or other staff representative, or phone the ACAS helpline on 08457 474 747.
Short-time working
As an alternative to redundancies, your employer might suggest a shorter working week or shorter working day. This is called short-time working. You may be able to claim jobseekers’ allowance to cover the part of the week for which you are not doing your usual paid work, so contact Jobcentre Plus (Jobs and Benefits Office in Northern Ireland). See Useful contacts for details.
No work
If you are made redundant, you may be able to claim jobseekers’ allowance and other benefits, so contact Jobcentre Plus (Jobs and Benefits Office in Northern Ireland).
Finding work
Jobcentre Plus (Jobs and Benefits Office in Northern Ireland) may be able to help you find work or refer you to another employment agency with experience in your area of work.
You might make this an opportunity to switch careers or retrain. Consider getting advice from the Careers Advice Service (England) or its equivalent in other parts of the UK. For your nearest college to find out about courses available, contact the Association of Colleges. Careers services and colleges can tell you what funding may be available for you and/or childcare. See Useful contacts for details.
The maximum amount of statutory redundancy pay you can get is a lump sum of £10,500 (increasing to £11,400 from October 2009). Check how much you personally could get by using the Redundancy Pay Calculator on the Directgov website).
Entitlement to working tax credits depends on how many hours you (and your partner, if relevant) work. If losing your job, or switching to part-time or short-time working, mean you no longer qualify, there is a four-week breathing space until the credits stop. Make sure you tell the tax credits office (see Useful contacts) whenever your work, pay or other circumstances change.
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Do you work with families?
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