How much maternity leave to have?

[Emmaw_9]

I would say it depends on what maternity package you have and how your finances are.
I will have had 9 months off as savings are now gone and in my contract it states if I take the extra 3 months unpaid I may not return to my old job but 'something similar' and I worked my ass off for my job and I love it so nobody is having it!!
You don't have to give them a definite answer now though? I had to write a letter 8 weeks before my return.
I would say though, if you are planning on returning quite soon after baby is born, work as much as u physically can before you go in mat leave and then you get more time with baby

 

[Sophie_P]

Thought I had to give definate answer now. Do you advise asking them their package first? Then sort finances out etc. Just did a benefit calculator for Working Tax Credit and i'm not eligible because I work 22.5 hours not the 24 asked. Damn.

 

[Emmaw_9]

All I had to give them was the date I'd be leaving, not when I was coming back.
Is there not like a staff handbook or anything at all to explain everything?
I'd definitely ask about your package tho, then if they want an answer you can decide based on that!

 

[Sophie_P]

No maternity notes anywhere at all. I have been snooping but no luck at all xx

 

[Jojo84]

I'm going off at 33 weeks. But first 3 weeks will be annual leave then I'm taking 33 weeks followed by 3 weeks annual leave so baba should be about 6-7 months old. But I'll return on 28 hrs instead of 38 a week.

However if hubby gets a full time job ill go back after a year and only on about 16hrs a week

 

[hayes]

Ive decided to go the end of nov as im anticapating other health probs as i get bigger. Think it will be about 32wks tho so not loads early. I get no maternity package at my work just the smp. So il get 90% of my pay for the first 6wks so that will take me up to te middle of jan and then onto te smp which is about £130 a week.

Im planning to go back sept as i work in a private nursery and we kinda have terms like a school so wud be best to go back then. Hopefully part time tho.

Michelle. x

 

[Iwant3]

with my 2 kids i was employed and planned to leave at 38 weeks and back when I had my son you only got paid for 6 months, so that's all i had and with my daughter it had been changed to 9 months - so I had 9 months then.

This time (fingers crossed), I am self-employed and my business will fold and we will be in extreme financial trouble if we take longer than a week or so off....so we're kinda hoping depending on type of birth etc - to just have a week from labour/birth - then back to it! Is has been done in our line of work I read up loads about it before we decided to ttc.

 

[iWitch]

Do you work in an office Sophie? If you have access to the intranet, you're usually able to get. The Maternity Policy off there. I'll be taking the full 39 weeks off providing we don't hit any trouble. I get 6 weeks 90%, 12 weeks 1/2 pay plus SMP then 21 weeks at SMP. Worst case scenario I come off maternity leave early and I will use some of my annual (31 days this year!!)

 

[CARNAT22]

Don't forget you also accrue public holidays as well as leave.

Some places may be happy to pay you for annual leave at points through your maternity leave!

My work said they'd happily pay me up to 10 days in one go, once I'd accrued them of course. I decided to let everything accumulate and then get paid a wad in December.

xxxxx

 

[Sophie_P]

Do you work in an office Sophie? If you have access to the intranet, you're usually able to get. The Maternity Policy off there. I'll be taking the full 39 weeks off providing we don't hit any trouble. I get 6 weeks 90%, 12 weeks 1/2 pay plus SMP then 21 weeks at SMP. Worst case scenario I come off maternity leave early and I will use some of my annual (31 days this year!!)

I work in an office yeah, where can I find the policy?

 

[Jojo84]

Every company has a maternity policy. We're made to read all policies and procedures as they a&e updates (about 20 a month) so we just find ours in our policy files

 

[Sophie_P]

It's actually making me worry now that I can't find a policy.

 

[CARNAT22]

Don't stress hun.

Once you disclose your pregnancy, you can ask about the policy.

When do you plan to tell work?

I think the official date you have to let them know you are preggers by is 15 weeks prior to EDD.

xxxxxxxx

 

[k8_005]

It's actually making me worry now that I can't find a policy.

Just speak to the hr department in confidence and ask to see the policy they have to provide it to you. It's the law x

 

[Sophie_P]

We don't have a HR department.
I plan to tell work when i'm twelve weeks, as we are telling family then and it'll be all over facebook(my boss is on my facebook) xx

 

[Sophie_P]

We don't have a HR department.
I plan to tell work when i'm twelve weeks, as we are telling family then and it'll be all over facebook(my boss is on my facebook) xx

 

[iWitch]

Do you have an intranet? (Like an internal site?) if you have a search facility type in maternity and see of it comes up. We have an a-z menu & I just go to M. I think our policy states we don't have to give them a date until we get the Mat B1 (?? Is that the form) from midwife and I think that's around 20weeks isn't it?

 

[Sophie_P]

No we don't have a special internet site either! Argh!

 

[Woldo]

With my first I started my maternity leave at 35 weeks but had 2 weeks holiday beforehand. I'm taking my maternity leave early this time round as my son is due to start preschool and I just think it'll be easier for me. Luckily I work from home so will hopefully go back to work few months after baby is born.

 

[CARNAT22]

I would put it all to one side for the time being hun and discuss it once you have told boss (it is only a few weeks??)

There will be some kind of maternity policy, I think by law every company has to have one!

He can tell you what you are entitled to and you can have a few weeks to decide about how long to take etc...

xxxxxx