Maternity Leave
What is maternity leave?
Maternity
leave is what many companies term the 4- to 6-week (6 to 8 weeks for
a c-section) "period of disability" taken by an employee after she gives
birth. This leave can be paid or unpaid or covered by a combination
of vacation, sick and personal days depending on your firm's policy.
Is my employer required to let me take it?
Laws
on maternity and disability leave are not universal and do not cover
smaller employees or the self-employed. However, if you work for a firm
with 15 or more employees, you can't be fired simply for being pregnant.
The laws that protect disabled workers also protect pregnant ones.
Before
you tell anyone in your office that you're pregnant, you should be prepared
to answer these questions, according to June Solnit Sale and Kit Kollenberg,
authors of "The Working Parents Handbook."
- How
long can you work?
- How
much time would you like to take off after your baby is born?
- Will
you return on a full- or part-time basis?
- Who
will do your work when you're gone?
To help answer these questions, consult
these sources:
- Your
company's personnel handbook. If you don't have one, ask for one without
specifying particular interest in maternity leave policies.
- Your
union, if applicable.
- State
laws regarding disability and maternity leave.
- Your
own personnel file. Tally up your accumulated vacation, personal, and
sick leave days.
- Other
working parents. Find out how they handled maternity leave and what
lessons they learned from the experience.
When should I discuss leave with my employer?
It's
crucial to tell your employer about your pregnancy before it becomes
noticeable. Why? You'll be in a stronger position to negotiate a leave
if you approach your boss directly with a specific plan, preferably
before the midpoint of your pregnancy. If both you and your supervisor
have time to prepare for your departure, then he or she will be more
likely to help orchestrate a smooth return.
When does it start and how long does the
leave last?
According
to "The Working Parents Handbook," there's no "right time" to stop working.
A lot will depend on your energy level, how easy or complicated your
pregnancy becomes after the initial exhausting months, and the stress
and physical labor involved in your career. Some women start their leave
in the seventh or eighth month while others work right up until delivery.
How long you decide to stay at home is also a personal decision based
on your company's policies and your own preferences. Most moms return
to work after giving birth. However, some take only 4 to 6 weeks, while
others stay home for a full year or more. Your initial plan could change
if you have a difficult delivery or if your child has a disability.
Or like Kathy Frieswick of Haverhill, Massachusetts, you may simply
not be ready to hand your baby over to a caregiver when your planned
leave is up. "They'll only be babies once and I want to spend that time
with them," says Frieswick, the mother of 9-month-old twins Liam and
Tess and a public school teacher petitioning for a second year of unpaid
leave.
Once
your maternity leave runs out, parental leave takes over. The 1993 Federal
Family and Medical Leave Act, which applies only to men and women working
for companies with more than 50 workers, guarantees that employees will
be able to return to the same or equivalent jobs when they take up to
12 weeks off (in a 12-month period) for the birth, adoption, or foster-care
placement of a child.
Each
company can devise its own parental leave policy under this general
act. For example, although the act states that employees on leave do
not accrue benefits, some companies may elect to grant parental leave
at no pay but continue to offer full-employer paid health coverage.
The
Family and Medical Leave Act does have some major loopholes. For example,
employees must notify their employers 30 days before taking leave. And
employers aren't required to hold your position if you are in the top
10 percent of the highest paid employees in the firm. Finally, your
employer may require you to use paid sick leave and vacation time as
part of the leave.
What if I'm not ready to return when my leave
is up?
If
you've exhausted all of your maternity and parental leave options and
are still not ready to return to work full-time, discuss these options
with your employer:
-
Flexible work scheduling — you put in 40 hours a week but determine
your own schedule.
-
Meal-break flexibility, which would allow you to cut out of the office
an hour early or come in an hour late each day.
- Job
sharing with another employee and splitting the hours and benefits.
-
Part-time work.
- Telecommuting
from a home office.
Matrix Absence Management is providing this information
as a service to our clients and their employees. The health-related
information and resources found here are not substitutes for professional
medical advice or for the care that patients receive from their physicians.
If you believe you may suffer from this condition or are experiencing
symptoms, please contact your physician immediately.
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