Deal with the situation where an employee has failed to return to work after maternity leave

Key points

Where an employee has failed to return to work after maternity leave, the employer should try to ascertain the reason, before deciding what action to take.
If the employee does not intend to return to work, but has not given the required notice, the employer should ask them to confirm their resignation in writing and make it clear to them that they will not be entitled to be paid for any part of their notice period that they are not willing to work.
If the employee is unable to return to work because of sickness, the employer's normal arrangements for sickness absence will apply.