Absence from work

Most absences are for a relatively short time so do not affect your membership of the Scheme. However, if you have a longer period of unpaid absence away from work then neither you, nor the Company, will pay any contributions to your Pension Account for that time.

If you are absent from work for reasons other than family leave but continue in service, your contributions will be payable as long as you continue to receive earnings.

Special rules apply to periods of family leave; these rules are summarised below.

Maternity, paternity, adoption, parental leave

Your Pensionable Service will continue throughout your maternity, paternity, adoption or parental leave (ordinary or additional) as long as you are being paid by the Company. During this time you must continue to pay contributions based on the actual pay that you receive. The Company will continue to pay contributions based on the pay that you would have received if you were working normally (and by reference to the rate of contributions you were paying before your leave commenced).

During any other period of leave for family reasons (so any period of parental leave, or period of additional maternity leave, additional paternity leave or additional adoption leave which you are not paid by the Company), you will remain a member of the Scheme but both you and the Company will only pay contributions based on the actual earnings that you received (if any). If you return to work, you may be able to make up missed contributions as if you had been working normally during the period of absence.

Death benefits continue as normal during any period of absence for family reasons.