July 2015 Moms
katedewberry
member
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Frustrated (Leave rant)
katedewberry
member
So this entire pregnancy I have been very focused on making sure that I do everything right, both in terms of my baby but also in terms of my job. This vent is focused on my job. I made sure that we didn't start trying to get pregnant until I knew that I would be FMLA eligible and then I was focused on making sure that I would still be getting paid while off. Because of that, I haven't taken a single day of vacation, I worked hard last year to ensure that I could roll over the full week that is allowed, I researched and asked HR (which is the group that I work for) about what my best path was. I am eligible for 30 calendar days of extended sick leave, then I have to use all of my vacation 5 weeks, and then I was told that the company has a trust that is used to supplement any time that wouldn't be covered.
So I talked to my co-worker who is on the Trust Board that decides this and she told me a number of times that I was approved and that there was no problem. I just found out that I was not approved and that everything isn't fine. She flat out lied to me. If I had known, my husband and I would have planned very differently and started saving - specifically for the period of time that I wouldn't be paid. Since I was told that we were good to go, we didn't. I feel as if the trust is based on antiquated ideas and purposefully excluded pregnancy because this is an old boys club type of environment. Now, I am going to have to go unpaid for a few weeks and then if the baby gets sick or I get sick, I will have to take more unpaid leave in addition to the 12 weeks of FMLA.
I know that I am lucky that I get anything at all, but I just feel lied to and frustrated. We have to improve on the maternity leave situation in this country. Why should women have to be penalized for having a child?
Okay, done with rant.... sorry
So I talked to my co-worker who is on the Trust Board that decides this and she told me a number of times that I was approved and that there was no problem. I just found out that I was not approved and that everything isn't fine. She flat out lied to me. If I had known, my husband and I would have planned very differently and started saving - specifically for the period of time that I wouldn't be paid. Since I was told that we were good to go, we didn't. I feel as if the trust is based on antiquated ideas and purposefully excluded pregnancy because this is an old boys club type of environment. Now, I am going to have to go unpaid for a few weeks and then if the baby gets sick or I get sick, I will have to take more unpaid leave in addition to the 12 weeks of FMLA.
I know that I am lucky that I get anything at all, but I just feel lied to and frustrated. We have to improve on the maternity leave situation in this country. Why should women have to be penalized for having a child?
Okay, done with rant.... sorry
Re: Frustrated (Leave rant)
This countries mat leave policy is assenine but everytime I see petitions going to the government about this there are never enough signatures. I think women after they give birth forget about how difficult it can be during those first few months after baby is born.
Something has to be done but we have to be the ones to do it. The last petition I signed needed 100,000 signatures and after two weeks only 7,000 people had signed it.
TTC #1 since 3/2011
DX: anovulatory and severe MFI
DH is a testicular cancer survivor
IVF#1 w/ICSI lupron, gonal f, ovidrel
ER 6/15/12 6R 6M 6F! ET 6/20/12
Beta #1: 154 Beta #2: 509 Beta #3: 7326
Baby Boy born 3/1/2013
TTC#2: 6/2014 all testing came back normal
IVF#2 (#1 for LO#2) 9/2014 - 17R 10M 10F 4 blasts frozen on day 6.
FET #1 10/15/14 - Beta #1: 216 Beta #2: 823
Baby Boy born 7/10/2015