- Blog
- Bios
- Boards
- Classifieds
- DIY
- Gallery
- Vendor Reviews
- Shop Weddingbee
Weddingbee boards
I just received this email from a colleague:
"Tomorrow will be my last day here at X before I will go on Maternity Leave and will probably return next year November."
Maternity leave from September 2011- November 2012, that is amazing!
Do any of you get maternity leave besides the 6 weeks that a doctor considers you to be disabled after delivery?
I definitely can't complain up here in Canada) We get 12 months of unemployment insurance basically, it's 50% of your salary, but maxes out at a salary of 44k I think (so it's 22k if you make 44 or higher). A lot of employers have some top up too. Mine tops up the first 17 weeks to 93% of your salary.
No. I wont even get the 6 weeks. My jobs has crap for benefits. I'm not having a baby right now so I'm not worrying about it too much yet, but it has crossed my mind that taking 6 weeks off really wont work out.
My job is known for hiring temporary employees when someone is on leave and then just never getting rid of them and kind of backwards replacing the person who was on leave.
Nope. We get the 6 weeks and then whatever vacation time you have saved up. Our policy requries us to take one week off (vacation time or unpaid if you dont have any) before the 6 weeks kicks in.
Is that paid leave for a year?!?
I get six months fully paid, three months partial pay, six weeks paid holiday and the remainder of a year unpaid plus I can take up to a three year career break after with a job at the end of it. I'm in the UK in a government job.
Where are you that you only get six weeks?
@Pinkshoes- Yes, I work for a German company and it's fuill paid leave. They require you to go out two months before the babay is due to rest (full paid) and then a yr of paid maternity. My company also requires me to take one week vacation time first so technically I would get 5 weeks paid and then the remaining of the 12 weeks (FMLA) I would have to take it unpaid.
In the UK, you get an automatic 26 weeks and can get an additional 26 weeks, which is a combined 52 weeks/1 year. The father can also take up to 26 weeks. You can start it upo to 11 weeks before your due date. I think it's paid up to 39 weeks. For the first 6 weeks, it's 90% of your regular weekly pay and the remaining 33 weeks it's either 90% of your weekly pay or £128.73 ($203) weekly, whichever is lower. I'm not a British citizen, so I may be slightly wrong but this is what the gov website says.
@roxy821: i agree. the system isnt exactly ideal in this country. where my family is from it was about a year too. not too mention you have time off and what not from the first day you are hired. not 90 days.
my company is 6 weeks for a natural birth 8 weeks if you had a c section. dont ask me why.
I don't get any maternity leave and I have a really nice job (the benefits are great for everything other than maternity). I get whatever annual leave I have saved. Forget taking off two months before I'm due, I'd probably work until I go into labor.
I think I can take up to 6 months unpaid, but I'd rather quit than take unpaid leave?
@roxy821:holy crap. yeah, US companies mat leave is total crap. Sometime I consider us lucky that we even get the 6 weeks, but for the most part, we're gettnig the short end of the stick here. Yeah, the rest of the 12 weeks if I dont have vacation time saved up, I would have to take unpaid also.
@PinkMagnolia: Why would you rather quit than take unpaid leave? With leave, you at least have the option to go back right? But if you quit, then you'd have to find a new job when you want to return to work?
@zippylef "the remaining 33 weeks it's either 90% of your weekly pay or £128.73 ($203) weekly, whichever is lower."
$200 a week for maternity leave? eek that wouldn't even cover diapers. That's only a little better than unpaid.
This is how it works here:
http://www.sweden.se/eng/Home/Work/The-Swedish-system/Employment_based_benefits/Parental-leave/
Sweden is very family-friendly.
I agree we do live in the wrong country. its very frustration and totally unfair! I just dont get it why a country like america wouldnt have a better system in place.
I was just talking to a friend about this since it got brought up here, and she brought up the point that the trade off is higher taxes and lower pay (compared to cost of living) that we get in the US. Any ideas on how true that is?
I grew up in a country where taking a year of paid maternity leave was completely normal, because government regulated. Also, 6 weeks of paid vacation is mandatory, and when you are sick, you stay home. No limited number of sick days. When you lose your job, the government makes sure you don't become homeless and have food on the table. Everybody must have at least public health insurance and I have never ever seen a doctor's bill when I lived there. I received graduate level university education for free. The tax rate is over 40%, though.
Then I moved to the States were people would get angry at the very thought that the government might try to tell them what to do. Sometimes, a little government regulation isn't so bad.
Yep we definitely have lower taxes and better pay (relative to the same job in Europe). I mean all of the social welfare stuff that Europe gets comes at a high cost. I much prefer our way, even if it means just not working when you have a baby.
Even if I "could" take 1 yr paid maternity leave I wouldn't. That would be a total career killer. There was an employee at our London office that got pregnant right after her first was born and was out of the office for two consecutive years. When she came back she basically had to start from scratch. Even though you are guaranteed a job when you return, you are not guaranteed the job you had. Somebody has to do your work while you're out.
@PinkMagnolia: Right, so while we (me included) sit here and whine about our 6 week maternity leave.. .if we considered that our tax brackets are maybe 25-28% vs 40% in europe, over the life time and 2 maybe 3 kids, if we were to have saved that extra ~12% ourselves, it would come out the same as if we had forked over that extra 12% to the government and had the year of 'paid' time off. The only problem with this is that most people dont have the discipline to save on their own and we dont see it that way.
@MASPA: Haha, yes there is! Hubby is a police officer, doesn't speak the language well enough, doesn't have a degree that would be recognized there, and therefore would have no chance to ever get a job there!
Also, like LGenz said, careers are more difficult. If you plan to stay home with your kids for a while, forget about going back and having a career after that! Also, switching careers after 30 is professional and financial suicide. Nobody will hire you if you are entry-level and 30+ years old. Plus, there is less flexibilty in your job search. Most job require a specific education path, even if it doesn't require a college degree.
Everything comes with a price. ;-)
Not pregnant, but I know I get 6-8 weeks depending on type of delivery. Then it gets confusing - you apply to take FMLA leave but that's only 4 weeks, then use PTO's. But that seems horrible to me, because first of all it's NOT enough time off to care for a newborn baby and second if you have to use all of your PTO's to make sure the baby lives, then you don't have any left for the rest of the year to rush home for emergencies and doctors appointments. So no matter how you slice it, it's just not enough time to maintain a work/life balance when caring for a newborn.
@PinkMagnolia: "I mean all of the social welfare stuff that Europe gets comes at a high cost. I much prefer our way, even if it means just not working when you have a baby."
I agree. I prefer our way. Like pinkshoes, people could take personal responsibility and save that money that they don't have to spend in taxes. I bet people would come out way ahead over time (considering mat leave and such) if they took the personal responsibility to save that difference in what we pay in taxes.
I'd rather take personal responsibilty for myself than have the government have a hand in so many aspects of my life.
A paid year off sounds lovely and everything, but I don't understand how you can just leave and be gone that long from your job and pick up where you left off? I don't know a lot of women with the kind of careers that would allow them to be out for an extended period like that and not have it affect their ability to do their job. I don't really even have that high level of a position and when I'm out on vacation for a week I feel like I'm completely out of the loop. It would be nice for everyone to get mandatory paid leave in the US but I think some of the ways other countries do it is a bit extreme.
As a Canadian, I just wanted to chime in about taking a full year off. I know it sounds strange to you guys who only get 6-12 weeks leave and you can't imagine having your career waiting for you when you come back after so long. Here, it's the standard, it's expected that you will take a year off, people get hired on contracts to replace you and then you come back to your job. I have a career, and I fully intend on coming back to it a year after our little one is born and there is no question in my mind that it WILL NOT set me back. When you think about it from the standpoint that socially everyone expects it to happen so there is no stigma attached to being 'the one who took too much time off'.
Just a little food for thought.
@OttawaBride2011: my BFF gets exactly the same Mat leave as you (17 weeks at 93%) I wonder if you both work for the same company?
That depends very much on your wage and income brackets. American CEOs pulling in ridiculous multimillion dollar bonuses, sure. But for average people (which the vast majority of us are) there is not much difference in taxes, though I think there is a considerable difference in what the people get for their taxes. The minimum wage is also generally higher, especially for the blue collar workers that get abused under the American system by companies like Wal Mart. And there are more employment protections as well. Largely due to (that dirty word) unions.
I think Americans should stop getting their information about the horrors of Europe from the mouthpieces of corporate lobby organizations.
@dookie32: I totally agree with everything you said.
I think that 3 months paid maternity leave would be great. I'd be happy with that!
At least here, you don't have to take it all in a block. You can use your family leave days up until the child is 8.
I think part of it too is attitude. I'm taking a bit of time off because we have savings but with a PhD I know many people have looked at that as a WTF choice and think I should be working my non-existant balls off during new mommyhood. I think bc time off in other countries is more widespread they dont view an extended leave with the same negative/career killing choice view that occurs here. What would be really great is the availability of quality part time work.
@prettylizy: Totally agree. It's absolutely expected that you can leave for a year and come back. I don't know anyone who went back and didn't get their old job again.
I'm good with paying what some of you think is high taxes and lower pay. I don't even notice it. FI and I live a comfortable life, we own our own place, drive 2 cars, go on vacation every year and yet we live on one income right now.
I would rather pay those high taxes and have everyone else enjoy the same freedoms than keep the money to myself and watch others struggle in life.
@moderndaisy: That's exactly my thought! Agree with everything you said.
I think it's about more than money and personal responsibility. I think that countries offering paid leave with job security are placing more emphasis on the family and offering parents time to bond with the baby and adjust to their roles.
As for the career side of things I imagine that when it's the cultural norm to take that much time off it isn't as hard to go back to work. Just like @prettylizy: said.
@troubled: That's absolutely true. My one cousin in Europe who didn't want to take her full 12 months got a lot of comments about it. Everyone expected her to want to spend that time with her baby!
Also (and I don't know how it is in other countries, but here...) fathers are very encouraged to take leave, too. Of the total number of days, each parent is alloted 60 that they can't give to the other parent. I think that hugely changes the workplace dynamic. It's parental leave. Not maternity leave.
@troubled: No I totally agree with you. I definitely think Americans are workaholics and at a lot of the places I've worked, there is this implication that you are lazy or unmotivated if you choose your family over your job. People are told at my company that when you are on vacation you need to have your Blackberry on and be accessable 24/7- which I think is absoultely absurd. We're talking media sales here too- nothing that is life or death. I have seen several women who had kids feel pressure to come back as quickly as possible from maternity leave because they were getting guilt trips put on them by bosses or getting screwed out of money (commission). I just can't imagine a scenerio where my boss or any of the ones I've had in the past would be encouraging me to take as much time as possible to spend with my baby. It's terrible- hopefully it's just the industry I'm in and other people in the US don't feel that way.
My FI and I are both self-employed. There would be no business to come back to if we just decided to take off for an entire year! (Or even 3 months.)
We'll just do what @pinkshoes suggested and plan ahead so that we have a plan and are financially ready when we have a child.
I get 6 weeks paid, can apply for short term disability for up to 3 months, and can use whatever vacation I have saved up. Pretty sad that most people consider that great when other countries have it better.
You know, this entire conversation has been dominated by money and saving up vs. taking off longer with higher taxes, etc.
When I have kids, I personally would love a year off because I don't want to miss spending time with my child! I wouldn't want to miss all the first time stuff, like walking and talking and rolling over and whatnot. If it's going to break even money-wise, I'd rather spend time with my child.
ETA: So in other words, I need to move to Canada or Europe, lol.
The US has crap for maternity policies because Americans don't vote for people who will support such policies. People here tend to vote for the interests of the super-rich, perhaps because we all think we'll be there one day.
@galloway111: Well, no, you wouldn't have to move to Canada or Europe. That is the point of the "money and saving up vs. taking off longer with higher taxes, etc." talk. That if you saved up that extra you would pay in taxes and set it aside for maternity leave - it would come out to the same amount of money in your pocket as paying the higher taxes and getting "paid maternity leave". Save the otherwise higher taxes you would be paying, and then 'pay yourself' with it when you are on our "unpaid leave'. The biggest problem I see is how Americans view time off VS other countries.
You must log in to post.
| Visit our sister sites | eHarmony Online Dating |
eHarmony Advice Dating Advice |
Project Wedding Wedding Songs |
JustMommies Pregnancy Calendar |
Create the honeymoon of your dreams.
| User | Posts Today |
|---|---|
| Lyndzo | 52 |
| Brielle | 41 |
| mypinkshoes | 34 |
| Cady | 32 |
| fivemonthsnotice | 32 |
| AshleyR83 | 30 |
| ndreighton | 27 |
| bridalprincess | 27 |
| rebwana | 26 |
| funkymunky85 | 26 |
| User | Posts Today |
|---|---|
| BoiledPNut | 2 |
| MarryMeTiffany | 2 |
| foodnerd81 | 2 |
| bunnylovesbear | 1 |
| simpleandchic | 1 |
| bebefly | 1 |
| keepsmiling19 | 1 |
| basketballwifetobe | 1 |
| hisgoosiegirl | 1 |
| KT808 | 1 |
