Rates set by The Social Security Benefits Up-rating Order 2026 (SI 2026/201). Effective 6 April 2026.Reviewed 23 June 2026

The Alabaster ruling explained

Edited by Oliver Wakefield-Smith, Founder of Digital Signet. Last reviewed 23 June 2026.

Direct answer

Why does Alabaster matter?

If you receive a pay rise effective at any point between the start of the relevant 8-week AWE period and the end of your maternity leave, your AWE must be recalculated as if the rise had been in force throughout the relevant period. Your SMP is then revised. The 90% phase is recalculated for the higher figure; arrears are usually paid as a lump sum.

The case

Alabaster v Woolwich plc and Secretary of State for Social Security (Case C-147/02) was decided by the Court of Justice of the European Union in 2004. The court held that the EU Equal Pay principle requires any pay rise awarded between the start of the AWE reference period and the end of maternity leave to be taken into account when calculating maternity pay.

UK implementation

The Statutory Maternity Pay (General) (Amendment) Regulations 2005 (SI 2005/729) wrote Alabaster into UK regulations. The relevant period for Alabaster runs from the start of the 8-week AWE window through to the end of maternity leave. A pay rise effective at any point in that window triggers recalculation.

How recalculation works in practice

  1. AWE is recomputed as if the new salary had applied throughout the original 8-week relevant period.
  2. 90% of the revised AWE is computed.
  3. Weeks 1 to 6 of SMP are restated at the higher figure. Arrears are paid in the next payroll run.
  4. The flat-rate phase (weeks 7 to 39) is only affected if the revised 90% AWE is below 194.32, in which case the lower figure applies.

What about a discretionary bonus paid after the QW?

Alabaster applies to a contractual pay rise. A genuinely discretionary bonus paid after the QW does not automatically trigger recalculation unless it represents pay properly attributable to the relevant period. Where the bonus is earned across the relevant period, the apportioned slice is treated as having been paid in the relevant period.