My 12 weeks will be up soon and I want an additional 2 months off unpaid ( i know im greedy!). I need help coming up with a decent excuse. I work in a place with lots of women so they are understanding but Im afraid that b/c its holiday time they might need me. But I feel like if I give a decent excuse they wont get mad at me. Im 80% sure if I ask for 2 more months off my job will still be there and wont be given away. Replacing me would take time and money to train someone new which isnt easy. I know Ill need to pay insurance but thats fine with me.
Should I say she has reflux? Do breast fed babies even get that? They know I Breastfeed.
Any baby can get reflux. With that said, it's a poor excuse to need more time off. Just straight up ask them for more time off. The worst they can say is no. In that case, move on and be grateful for the time you had off.
I would just be honest. Discuss your options with your boss or manager (can you take an additional 2 months off? Will you still have your job?) and go from there. Tell her or him that you want more time with your child. Period. No need to come up with an excuse or lie. Most people with children, especially women, will understand. If some people get mad at you then so what? You work with them and it's really none of their business. And if they are coworkers who are true friends then they will understand and support you. Honesty is always the best option, IMO. Hope that helps!
Being honest is your best bet because really, that's a lame lie. Lots of kids have reflux and it doesn't mean you have to be with them 24/7. Are you willing to take a gamble with that 80%? Obviously you know that after 12 weeks they can let you go without even a discussion so you really need to trust their word if they agree to give you the time.
Why lie about wanting to spend more time with your child? If there are SO many women who work there, I'm pretty sure you won't be the only one who has ever wanted to spend more time with your child. If it's okay with your work, and financially you guys can swing it, there's really no need to lie.
Tough love time: Grow up. If you want more time off, ask for more time off. Either they'll give it to you or they won't. If they do, awesome — you get more time with your baby and you don't have to worry about covering your tracks. If they don't, that sucks, and you'll have a tough decision to make. You're a parent now, and you need to be an adult. That means being honest and owning your priorities. What you're talking about doing is exploiting your employer's sympathy and making life harder for your coworkers (if they really need you there at a busy time of year) for dishonest reasons. Imagine how you'll feel when they find out you lied to them.
I'm not insensitive to your situation. I tried to negotiate an alternative mat leave plan that would have given me more time at home, and my employer wouldn't go for it. It sucked, and it left me unsure if I wanted to stay with my company. But I didn't make up a reason I needed more time off. Not only would it have been dishonest and manipulative, it would have been unfair to the coworkers who would have had to pick up my slack thinking they were doing something to help me out in a tough situation while really they would have been working extra hard so I could sit on my couch drinking wine and snuggling my perfectly healthy baby.
Just tell them you want to take 2 months off. You won't be covered under FMLA (if you even are), but just tell them. You don't need to make up an excuse.
Re: Excuse Needed for more time off!!