Maternity Leave Question

RobinaUMCP · January 2012

My boss and I are close and I told her that I was expecting when I reached 12 weeks. While she is excited for me on a personal level, on a profesional one she is freaking out. She is also a little mad at me for not telling her sooner. My response: Indifferent

Anyway, I told her that we need to sit down and schedule a time to go over my M/L plans and her expectations for when I am out, etc. She told me (sort of in a joking way), that she doesn't really want to talk about this until June (I'm due in July) otherwise it will seem more real. Umm, okay. Obviously, HR issues are not her strong suit.

My company offers 3 months of unpaid leave. By July, I should have about 1 month of paid vacation and sick leave accrued and I would like to take a total of 4 months of leave. When I return, I would like to work from home 1 day per week for the forseeable future.

Since it appears my boss is not going to be the driver of this discussion, what do you suggest/advise? Should I just tell her what I am going to do? It's annoying that she is making this so hard. How did this discussion work for you guys?

TIA!

QueSrah · January 2012

I would probably give her another month or two to stop feeling sorry for herself for having to deal with you being out for months and then ask to talk about it again. My boss is bad with HR issues, and I was probably 5 or 6 months PG before he wanted to talk details - he stuck his head in the sand for months. Can you put together a proposal over the next few months that covers how your work will be addressed in your absence, how long you plan to be out, and your wish for one telecommute day? As much as you want to get everything ironed out now, in most cases it doesn't take 6 months to put in place the training of others to take over for you.

BirdGirl01 · January 2012

You can ask about an additional month, but if your company is covered by FMLA, your 4th month will NOT be covered. FMLA protects you against firing for 12 weeks only (if you're in DC - DC law provides 16 weeks). FMLA also doesn't let you tack on a month based on leave. You get 12 weeks total. Paid or unpaid. You can always negotiate more, but it's entirely up to the company.

Re 1 day out of the office. You should have a plan for childcare and be able to confirm that you will have full-time childcare for the day you work from home. You know your boss, but if it were me, I would wait until I had returned and had been working for a few months before I brought it up. Then it's not so much at once related to the baby. I waited until 6 months after I was back to propose a "part time" schedule.

2vthokies · January 2012

Let the dust settle and then go in with your proposal. I would actually propose the part-time schedule upfront so it doesn't seem like a bait and switch, but your know your boss and your company atmosphere so decide based on that.

My company is pretty family friendly so it was easy to negotiate my part-time status (I work 32 hours/week, 7 hours M-H, Friday I telework in the morning only). While thinking through what you want, you have to think of some concessions. I love my schedule and no one gives me grief about it, but I make sure that I am available via email/phone for time sensitive issues on Friday afternoons. I rarely work the weekend or late, but I do if I have to to get something out the door. By being flexible and available for last minute issues I have shown that I am dependable and responsible. Not being in the office on Friday or being the one who mainly stays home when the kids are sick does not phase anyone. You also need to think of your career long-term (if that's important to you). Working my hours and being available/flexible has allowed me to maintain my previous level of responsibility and take on more. I don't feel my career has suffered because of my part-time status.

Also, check your company policy re teleworking and childcare - I am required to have childcare the day that I telework.

RomeRomance06 · January 2012

BirdGirl01:
You can ask about an additional month, but if your company is covered by FMLA, your 4th month will NOT be covered. FMLA protects you against firing for 12 weeks only (if you're in DC - DC law provides 16 weeks). FMLA also doesn't let you tack on a month based on leave. You get 12 weeks total. Paid or unpaid. You can always negotiate more, but it's entirely up to the company.
Re 1 day out of the office. You should have a plan for childcare and be able to confirm that you will have full-time childcare for the day you work from home. You know your boss, but if it were me, I would wait until I had returned and had been working for a few months before I brought it up. Then it's not so much at once related to the baby. I waited until 6 months after I was back to propose a "part time" schedule.

If you are in DC you should be able to take 4 months. I did 3 months maternity leave, came back part-time for a month and then full-time after that. You still have a while and your duties that need to be covered while you're gone will be more set in stone closer to your leave date. About 6 weeks before my due date I sent a several page memo outlining what needs to be covered while I was away and also outlined my return to work plan. This is a very helpful link https://www.phwa.org/resources/goodcompany/newsletter/article/238

- if you scroll down, you'll see some templates - I used one of those. I did have a quick meeting with one of my bosses earlier on just saying what I was looking for as but the memo really made everyone feel comfortable about what was going to happen. I also asked to work from home twice a week when I returned and they agreed. Be forward, put it in writing and just show that you have it all under control now and your boss should calm down. Good luck!

drslizndan · January 2012

If I'm reading your post right, I would only hesitate to not use up ALL my sick/vacation leave to extend my maternity leave. As much as I would've loved to have stayed home for another month with DD, we definitely used sick and vacation leave when she was in daycare. It seemed like she was getting cold after cold, and I had to take at least a day or two every other month to be with her while she recuperated.

RobinaUMCP · January 2012

This is really helpful. Thanks everyone! I agree drslizndan. I hope in that in the case LO gets sick, DH would be able to help out for the remainder of the year (I plan to be back at work in early Nov.). He's only using abouut 2 weeks of leave when the baby is born. I also know it's kinda of early to be thinking about this, but if the second trimester is like the first, the time is going to fly by and I have soooo many things to do. It's hard not to get overwhelmed.

umdbride · January 2012

Double check if you'll still accrue leave while you're on short term disability and using PTO or even unpaid leave. At my last job I continued to accrue most of the time I was on maternity leave so when I came back I still had leave to take when DS was sick.

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