UGH!!! Soooo ANGRY re: maternity leave!

lovemymaddy · February 2010

UGH!!! I am NOT happy! Madelyn is currently due on April 9th which is the Thursday of our spring break off here from school. We will have been off since April 1st. Get this: Just found out this morning that my 6 weeks paid time off starts the day I give birth, whether it's over Spring Break or not! Meaning if she comes early during the break, that's when my 6 weeks starts ticking. Everyone else in my school/district is already off for the break but that starts my Maternity Leave on the day I give birth, break or not. Does this seem unfair to anyone else??? If she would be a week early that means I have to come back to school a week earlier. So technically in my mind I just lost a week of my leave because I was thinking that I was already "off" for Spring Break like everyone else. BOOO!!!! Angry

And everyone keeps saying here at school, "Well, just get the dr to write you a note to stay home." I'm sorry but that'd be almost three weeks unpaid... I don't think that DH and I can really swing that....

sassafras007 · February 2010

I am supposed to go on leave April 6. My leave started today due to being put on bed rest. My LT sub cannot do the job anymore because it is so early. I don't have anyone to cover yet. I have plans ready for April, not now... I am probabloy going to have to go back at the end of the year now since I am out...

No one understands that doing this while being a teacher is 10 times as hard unless they have been there!

DSU98 · February 2010

I am a teacher too and that does not seem right to me. If I already have the days off because there is no school, I do not have to count them towards my 6 weeks. Pretty much if you think of it I get 30 days off (6 weeks), but that is 30 school days not days that there is already vacation. We are scheduled for a c-section on April 5th, which we have no school, so that does not count as a day of one of my 30, I still will have 30. I think your school district is being unfair and I would question that decision. What state do you live in?

urbanwifey · February 2010

really?

um, wow, that is a rip off. if others don't have to put in for "time off" you shouldn't have to include it in yours. our districts give you paid time even if 3 weeks are before summer vacation and 3 weeks are in the fall.

ktsnshn · February 2010

We only get paid for the number of sick days we have accumulated. Fortunately for me I have been in the district long enough to have about 50 in my bank. I am taking the full 12 weeks FMLA time so part of my leave will not be paid. However, my district does not count spring break as part of that time. I am sorry to hear that your district will be taking away from your time with your LO by using spring break as part of your leave. That seems very unfair.

robinsokj · February 2010

So, if you went on leave during summer break, would those weeks count as well? Thats such a stupid policy

liza0828 · February 2010

No, that doesn't seem right to me. I don't have to use my accrued leave during spring break, because it is already considered paid time off. They are not paying a sub during that week, so why should I have to use leave time? That's kind of like expecting you to use leave time during the weekend.

StrawberryAlarmClock · February 2010

Check your handbook to see if you have a disclaimer like this:

The definition of a six week medical leave means six calendar weeks from the date of birth of the child. This does include weekends, holidays and any other day that school is not is session. If your leave falls during a scheduled school vacation such as Spring Break, you will not need to exhaust sick days for this time. However, it does count against the six week leave period.

ColleenandKen · February 2010

That stinks and is frustrating, but to play devil's advocate... this would be the like if you gave birth in the summer-- you already have that time off, would you expect that when your summer time off was up (in september) that you could then use the 6 weeks of paid time off for the first 6 weeks of school?

It sounds like the school department probably got burned by someone taking advantage of the system, and now they have cracked down on everything to the point of being ridiculous.

nln883 · February 2010

Yup, mine is the same way. They will only pay for 6 wks of maternity leave (for regular birth, 8 for C-sec) from the day after the birth. Even if my doctor writes me out longer and says I cannot work for medical reasons, I still will only get paid for the 6 or 8 weeks. I can take more time off if needed, but it won't be paid. And with all the snow days the mid-Atlantic has had, I'm probably going to have to go back at the end of the year too. Boo!

ShariL · February 2010

I would definetly check into this. Your lucky though, I do not get paid for maternity leave as a teacher. Only sick time pay that I have. My EDD is April 3rd and since it is during Spring Break, my school secretary was starting my leave after Spring Break.. April 5th.

Unfortunately things don't always work out as they plan. I have been out on bed rest since February 8th. If my LO comes out on my EDD I would have used 8 weeks of FMLA and would only have 4 more weeks left. I checked with personnel services and I can still take longer I just have to check with insurance benefits on how long it will be covered.

I checked with insurance benefits and once a month has started then they pay for the next month so my insurance will be covered until the end of June. I am going back for post planning for 2 days in June so that my insurance will be covered for the rest of the summer.

As of today I have used up all of my sick time and my last paycheck is March 3rd. We will have to live off one income from March until I get my first paycheck in September. That is a long time without any pay. In the end I would rather live on a tight budget and spend all the time with our LO. I hope we do not use up all of our savings though. We will see.

RadicalDreamer143 · February 2010

Well, if it makes you feel better, that's what most non-teachers (salaried) people have to deal with. I don't get an extra day or two off if, say, Labor Day fell during my 6 week leave. At least you have a whole summer to look forward to.

katie.i.do · February 2010

my boss told me something messed up like that happened back when she had her twins. they were born really early on new years, so her mat leave started then, and they counted it, and it dug into her time, even though it was a company holiday and everyone else had it automatically off.

ASmallWonder · February 2010

JamieS2006:
Well, if it makes you feel better, that's what most non-teachers (salaried) people have to deal with. I don't get an extra day or two off if, say, Labor Day fell during my 6 week leave. At least you have a whole summer to look forward to.

It sucks but, this. My company will have two paid holidays while I'm on maternity leave but my leave isn't extended by 2 days because of it.

amykins1283 · February 2010

That doesn't seem fair. In my district, we get to bank our sick leave if we don't use it from year to year. When we go out on leave they take our sick leave first, if we opt for it, and then we receive 6 weeks short term disability after the 8 day waiting period. I am 99% certain that our leave does not count if we go out over a break since we are not supposed to be in school anyway. That, to me, would be like getting a cold over Spring Break and having to call out sick to work, even though you are not there.

maureen1984 · February 2010

Could you say you had the baby on Sunday (the last day of the vacation)? That way you can at least maximize your leave time.

cutie420311 · February 2010

JamieS2006:
Well, if it makes you feel better, that's what most non-teachers (salaried) people have to deal with. I don't get an extra day or two off if, say, Labor Day fell during my 6 week leave. At least you have a whole summer to look forward to.

this exactly, and I think it's hard for everyone, not 10 times harder for teachers.

bedebum13 · February 2010

That is ridiculous - I don't blame you for being upset. A girlfriend of mine had her baby last month and she has to go back to work before spring break (she is a teacher) or she doesn't get paid at all for it. I thought that was ridiculous as well - sorry you have to deal with this!

sucrets4 · February 2010

I actually think that seems common. Spring Break is PAID vacation (unless your school is different than every school I've worked in), so why wouldn't it start then?

And I agree with whoever posted that you get LUCKY since you have off and don't need to use sick time.

RadicalDreamer143 · February 2010

cutie420311:
JamieS2006:
Well, if it makes you feel better, that's what most non-teachers (salaried) people have to deal with. I don't get an extra day or two off if, say, Labor Day fell during my 6 week leave. At least you have a whole summer to look forward to.

this exactly, and I think it's hard for everyone, not 10 times harder for teachers.

Yeah, I didn't get that comment either (FWIW, I worked as a perma sub in NYC, have a ton of teachers in my family, and they all talk about how easy it is to have that summer/vacations off after having kids). Yes, you have to make lesson plans... I have a project demo for the customer of my product, a schedule to beat out, things to plan for when I return, a conference call to attend WHILE ON LEAVE, and working with men... not a lot of sympathy for my lack of motivation.

erpurr · February 2010

sassafras007:

No one understands that doing this while being a teacher is 10 times as hard unless they have been there!

This made me pause a little, try owning your own business where you are the only full-time person.

I know that being a teacher is hard, my mother is a teacher. But I don't think it's necessarily harder to deal with than any other employer. I do understand your frustration with your district's policy. I don't think that would be fair coming from any employer since you're not supposed to be working at that time anyway.

I would love to have a real maternity leave. As it is I have part-time employees that can cover some of my duties but I still have to come in to do the accounting, ordering, open the shop on Sundays, and for any other crisis they may have. I will probably have to be at work the week after LO is born. Hopefully as little as possible, and since I own the place, I can bring him with.

sucrets4 · February 2010

And actually, you could get your doctor to write a note for another week since financially you'd be in the same situation if you delivered much earlier or later.

sucrets4 · February 2010

maureen1984:
Could you say you had the baby on Sunday (the last day of the vacation)? That way you can at least maximize your leave time.

I wouldn't lie on official, legal documents.

lovemymaddy · February 2010

sucrets4:

I actually think that seems common. Spring Break is PAID vacation (unless your school is different than every school I've worked in), so why wouldn't it start then?

And I agree with whoever posted that you get LUCKY since you have off and don't need to use sick time.

I DO have to use sick time. I can UP TO 6 weeks paid if I have enough days accumulated which I do. For someone that didn't have enough days saved up, it would be unpaid for them. If I take any more time after 6 weeks (even if I have the sick days to use, which I do, it's still unpaid.)

lnyost · February 2010

uhhhh, yeah, teachers have their summers off, not sure how that makes going out 10 times harder then those of us who aren't teachers.

sucrets4 · February 2010

lovemymaddy:
I DO have to use sick time. I can UP TO 6 weeks paid if I have enough days accumulated which I do. For someone that didn't have enough days saved up, it would be unpaid for them. If I take any more time after 6 weeks (even if I have the sick days to use, which I do, it's still unpaid.)

Okay. But you're still on salary for the entire year and get paid accordingly. You don't get paid less just because there's a week of break, so while it sucks, it technically makes sense.

MsFutureBoyle · February 2010

My understanding from the district I work in is that you would still get the full 6 weeks, but I don't believe there is anything that states that leave has to be paid.

Unfortunately, I work through a contract agency so I have no Union backing and my district has decided not to hire anyone to cover my caseload while I am out so all of my special needs students will not be recieving their communication services for the length of time that I am out. Thus, I will have to 'make up' time when I return.

Ugh! Don't we just love our employeers.

autumn bliss · February 2010

I don't think it is unusual. I work in a school, but not as a teacher. For days when I am out on maternity leave that fall on holidays like Good Friday or Memorial Day, I have to take vacation days or STD for those days, I just don't get them off unless I was actually working. Same goes for break weeks.

Leathergirl_21 · February 2010

Def. talk to your teacher's union about this! That is totally not right. You can't days school isn't even in session!

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UGH!!! Soooo ANGRY re: maternity leave!

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