need advice -work related. -long

okay..so mike & i were talking last night about having children~not right now..but hopefully we'll start trying some time in 06.
We're trying to figure out financially how we are going to do it, and what our jobs will allow us.
He just read something from his job that he can take 12 weeks for newborn care. He can take that in consecutive weeks,or days, whatever he wants.
Where I am now, we dont have any set guidelines or anything for me to go by. I asked one of the girls here who had a baby about 2 years ago- she told me they paid her for 1 month and she had to come right back to work.
I know that sometimes, the companies that do offer you the 3 month leave or whatever might require that you work for them for at least a year....which means i better start making some decisions soon.
I would like to switch jobs for several reasons- one being better pay(hopefully) better perks, and something closer...but my main thing now is benefits with child birth.
So..my question to you is:
do i try to talk to my boss about it now so that i know for sure how it would work here?
Do I wait until my "review" time at the end of the year when we will be discussing salary and stuff?
Do i just start looking for a new job in january that will give me better benefits? And when I say i'm leaving, we can discuss how i am able to get more maternity leave?
The longer that i'd be at a new place, the better it would be, cuz then maybe i can change my hours and whatever if needed.
Its great that Mike has the ability to take off all that time..but i would like to be able to spend as much time as possible at home too, i would hate to have to go back after one month knowing that other companies can offer you more.
Oh...and when looking for a new job, is that one of the things that you would ask them?how much maternity leave do you get?
arhh....thank you..

Re: need advice -work related. -long

That's a tough one. It sounds like you are unhappy with your job for other reasons. I would look around. If you do get an offer that you would consider taking, I would take it back to your own company and see what you can negotiate. You can see if your office has a manual or something re: maternity benefits. If you have a review coming up, it may be a good time to go over all your benefits, and include maternity leave in there with your questions. That way it doesnt stand out as "she's asking only about maternity leave." People make assumptions when you do that.

Re: need advice -work related. -long

so then you think i should just wait until my review...
guess it cant hurt to start looking and just tell them i cant start until january

Re: need advice -work related. -long

If your review is coming up before 2006... then yes. If you get an offer before then, then you can bring it up when you tell them you received an offer.

Re: need advice -work related. -long

While Mike would get 12 weeks available to him - this sounds like it may be FMLA - which doesn't have to be paid time off, it could be unpaid. I would confirm the 12 weeks off is with pay.

I disagree- I would not discuss maternity leave, pregnancy or medical conditions during review time. Review time is about performance, expectations, etc. Bringing up that you may get pregnant or are pregnant can sway an employer to lower any increase he was considering. While this is illegal, it's highly unlikely it could be proven.

I'm assuming you work for a small company since you didn't mention HR or FMLA. You are considered disabled for 6 to 8 weeks after giving birth - for which you would probably be compensated either fully or partially depending on the new company. Some companies pay partially for disability if you've been there under a certain amount of time. (eg. we give 40% if you've been working under 2 years). If the company has more than 50 employees the are required to provide eligible* employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in any 12-month period for certain family and medical reasons.
they will give up to 12 consecutive weeks (your disability time counts against this 12 weeks) of FMLA.

When interviewing for a new company, you should not ask them their maternity leave policy. If you're going through a recruiter, ask them to find out their benefits (don't specify maternity). Otherwise, look up the company's website for benefit info or if you know someone who works there ask them.

In my experience, European companies tend to give better maternity leave benefits.


*Employees are eligible if they have worked for their employer at least 12 months, at least 1,250 hours over the past 12 months, and work at a location where the company employs 50 or more employees within 75 miles

Re: need advice -work related. -long

wow...great info..thank you.
And when reading his 12 week thing, it was Fmla and did not specify paid or not..good to know.
I do work for a small company with only 9 employees.
When do you think i should bring this up to my current boss then?

Re: need advice -work related. -long

For me, I wouldn't say anything until I was actually pregnant.

As it is, worse case scenario is that you get 6 weeks disability (8 weeks for c-section delivery) at your current job. You may be able to negotiate working at home certain days, adding on vacation time, etc.

If you decide to change jobs, try to get in a place that is larger with the FMLA and talk about comprehensive benefit plan. If you go in asking about maternity leave right away it may hurt your chance for getting the position.

Re: need advice -work related. -long

Re: need advice -work related. -long

I agree with Christine- I wouldn't say anything until I was pregnant. You don't know how long it will take you to get pregnant - and it could affect you financially.

If you are going to leave your job because you're unhappy, I would do it sooner rather than later. Let's say you start in January and you get pregnant in March. You can get in 12 consecutive months of working at a company with FMLA and take off the unpaid leave before you have the baby.