Published ahead of Mother’s Day on Sunday (26 March), it ranks the UK 22nd out of 24 European countries that offer statutory maternity leave for its maternity pay package.
The TUC analysis, which is based on research by the Leave Network - an international group that analysis and researches leave policies, claims that mothers in the UK receieve just six weeks of 'decently-paid' maternity leave, while most European countries offer three months or more.
'Decently-paid’ leave is considered as time off paid at two-thirds of women’s pre-maternity leave earnings or more, or a rate of pay greater than £840 per month.
In the UK, mothers are entitled to 52 weeks maternity leave and 39 weeks Statutory Maternity Pay. The first six weeks of leave at paid at 90 per cent of a woman's average weekly earnings (AWE) before tax. The remaining 33 weeks are paid at £139.58 or 90 per cent of a women's AWE, whichever is lower.
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