The Government should subsidise pension contributions to ensure those who take maternity/ parental leave are not penalised. Employee pension contributions during maternity are significantly reduced as they are based on actual pay. This may have a big knock-on effect on their accrued pension.
You may be interested in these active petitions
Statutory maternity pay is 90% of someone’s average weekly earnings (reduced to £172.48 after 6 weeks if this is lower). With compound interest over the years, the impact of lower contributions during maternity leave could eventually have a significant impact on people’s retirement ages.
The equalisation of state pension age indicates that men and women should be able to retire at the same age. However, those who took maternity/ parental leave may need to work for longer due to smaller pensions. The Government should therefore fund people’s standard contributions during this time.