NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Nov 13, 2012 12:02:25 GMT -5
I think it depends on your employer as well Angel. I get FMLA but if I wanted to do an alternate type of schdule it would have required approval on the part of my PIs.
We probably could ahve worked something out if I wanted to but I didn't feel the need to.
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Abby Normal
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Post by Abby Normal on Nov 13, 2012 12:04:21 GMT -5
We don't officially have maternity leave and it's hard for someone to fill my positition.
I had planned to take a week off before my son, but he came a week early- so I worked until about 11 hours before he was born (short delivery).
After a week at home, I took baby into the office with me- stayed for 20 minutes while I gathered a few things and left. Worked from home as I felt like it. Eventually baby came with me for longer and after 8 weeks I was back in the office full time. Baby in tow.
Not ideal, but it worked out well on all sides.
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on Nov 13, 2012 12:28:17 GMT -5
FMLA is NOT determined by your workplace. It is a federal law that works the same way across all 50 states. It has nothing to do with how you get paid. It only has to do with protecting your job. And if your job qualifies for FMLA protection, then your work place has to follow FMLA rules. They may put a few extra hoops in there- like having your PI (or boss) agree to the part time schedule, but the FMLA doesn't work differently.
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Abby Normal
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Post by Abby Normal on Nov 13, 2012 12:44:24 GMT -5
FMLA is NOT determined by your workplace. It is a federal law that works the same way across all 50 states. It has nothing to do with how you get paid. It only has to do with protecting your job. And if your job qualifies for FMLA protection, then your work place has to follow FMLA rules. They may put a few extra hoops in there- like having your PI (or boss) agree to the part time schedule, but the FMLA doesn't work differently. Assuming you are addressing me- yes you are correct. However, we do not have paid materity leave, though the company was going to pay me. Because of my position, it would have cost the company a fortune to replace me for 6 weeks. It was my decision not to go that route, and because I choose to do so, the company was extremely flexible with my schedule.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 13, 2012 12:47:08 GMT -5
I took 8 weeks off with my first and 6 with my 2nd. However, I went down to 3 days/wk after my first and worked that schedule until both kids were in school. Now I am still PT but I work five 6 hour days so I can get them on and off the bus.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Nov 13, 2012 12:48:55 GMT -5
FMLA is NOT determined by your workplace. It is a federal law that works the same way across all 50 states. It has nothing to do with how you get paid. It only has to do with protecting your job. And if your job qualifies for FMLA protection, then your work place has to follow FMLA rules. They may put a few extra hoops in there- like having your PI (or boss) agree to the part time schedule, but the FMLA doesn't work differently. Exactly.... When I went through FMLA earlier this year, at the beginning of my infection, I was able to stretch it out because I was working part time from home. I was able to work part time for about a couple months, which gave me another 4 weeks of time off. When my second hip was infected, then all bets were off and FMLA was not going to be sufficient as I was going to have to go through things all over again as if I was infected the first time. It was then that I applied for LTD. Up until then, I'm sure I could have managed to stretch things out long enough to get back to work.
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giramomma
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Post by giramomma on Nov 13, 2012 13:34:11 GMT -5
I don't handle sleep deprivation well - at all - and that is my main mental stumbling block when it comes to kids. Keeping my work 'face time' to a few days a week might be best for all involved You learn to cope. With this last pregnancy, I was in two classes, on top of two jobs and having two kids. Once my classes were done, I couldn't sleep at night because I simply couldn't get comfortable and was up peeing every 10 minutes. Then the baby came. My other two slept through the night (12 hours) by 3 months. This one still needs a middle of the night feeding. It's been 14 months and counting since I've slept 6 hours in a row for a solid week. Cutting down work isn't really an option, and neither is trying to control my baby's hunger.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 13, 2012 13:48:30 GMT -5
My wife cousin went back to work 2 weeks after her c-section because she wasn't there long enough to have maternity leave and that is all she could afford.
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hoops902
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Post by hoops902 on Nov 13, 2012 13:53:23 GMT -5
FMLA is NOT determined by your workplace. It is a federal law that works the same way across all 50 states. It has nothing to do with how you get paid. It only has to do with protecting your job. And if your job qualifies for FMLA protection, then your work place has to follow FMLA rules. They may put a few extra hoops in there- like having your PI (or boss) agree to the part time schedule, but the FMLA doesn't work differently. In the context of using some of your FMLA now (6 weeks) and then "stretching the rest over the next several months", then I would say it's highly dependent on your workplace. They can either be very relaxed about it, and let you do it. Or they can be very tough about it, and you'll probably have a tough time using FMLA like "time off" (since that's really how it sounds given the "stretching it out over 4 months) language.
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formerroomate99
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Post by formerroomate99 on Nov 13, 2012 13:56:38 GMT -5
With my births, around 2 weeks after giving birth, my hormones got all funky and I was in crazy town until around 6 week. I went back to work around 10 weeks with my first two and 12 weeks with my last one.
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midjd
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Post by midjd on Nov 13, 2012 13:59:13 GMT -5
In the three years I've been here, four of my female coworkers have had kids... one never came back from maternity leave, one put in her notice on the day she came back, and one lasted about six months before she requested to go part-time (which is how I got my "promotion"). The last one is still here.
With that kind of track record, and considering the average length of time it takes for them to go through the interview/hiring process, I'm guessing/hoping my employer will be pretty flexible in allowing me time off.
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quince
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Post by quince on Nov 13, 2012 14:07:49 GMT -5
If I decide it's likely I won't come back, I'm putting in my notice around month 6- I just don't feel good about doing it in the middle/end of leave.
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formerroomate99
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Post by formerroomate99 on Nov 13, 2012 14:16:13 GMT -5
If I decide it's likely I won't come back, I'm putting in my notice around month 6- I just don't feel good about doing it in the middle/end of leave. I wouldn't do that unless you are absolutely sure you aren't coming back. Your duty to your family outweighs your duty to an employer.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Nov 13, 2012 14:20:40 GMT -5
Also - employers start treating someone weird when they know they are leaving. It rarely works out for anyone involved to put in more than 1 month of notice. Because, as much as you think the world crumbles if you stop going to work, after 3 or 4 weeks, they have devised a plan to do without you. If you are still working there 3 months later - you are just taking up space and payroll dollars they really want to use elsewhere. And they will treat you accordingly.
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quince
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Post by quince on Nov 13, 2012 14:28:14 GMT -5
I'm fine with them getting rid of me a couple of days after I give notice- we have money, sufficient income, the cost of Cobra is not prohibitive, access is available to my husband's health plan- I wouldn't give early notice regardless of discomfort if I wasn't OK with my day of delivering notice being my last day.
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weltschmerz
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Post by weltschmerz on Nov 13, 2012 14:49:55 GMT -5
I took a year off. Yes, it was paid.
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on Nov 13, 2012 14:51:30 GMT -5
Hoops: Actually, intermittant FMLA coverage is very common, and is used exactly like time off. Again, FMLA does NOT pay you any money. It just prevents your employer from firing you or downgrading you from full time to part time employee (with the corresponding loss of benefits).
I was addressing my remarks to those who were saying FMLA works differently based on your employer, and that is not true. FMLA works the way FMLA works. It's a federal law, and it has very specific benefits and limits. In some places, your employer may have policies that give you extra protections or your state may have a supplementary law (WA has the Family Care Act which grants FMLA like protection in certain instances where FMLA coverage is lacking), but you can never have worse FMLA coverage than someone else, unless your employer/leave administrator is breaking the law. If you are approved for intermittant FMLA, then you are approved for it and there is nothing your employer can do about it. At the same time, it never hurts to jump through the reasonable hoops set up by your employer, just to maintain a good work environment.
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ontrack
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Post by ontrack on Nov 13, 2012 14:57:52 GMT -5
Doesn't FMLA only apply if your company has more than 50 employees?
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midjd
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Post by midjd on Nov 13, 2012 15:00:43 GMT -5
I believe so.
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Post by illinicheme on Nov 13, 2012 15:02:01 GMT -5
I'm currently pregnant with my first. I have no idea exactly how this is all going to go, but I'm definitely taking more than 3 weeks leave! My initial thinking is ~3 months, but I've got to talk to HR and get a clear understanding of my options.
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muttleynfelix
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Post by muttleynfelix on Nov 13, 2012 15:03:48 GMT -5
Doesn't FMLA only apply if your company has more than 50 employees? Yes and you have to be there for at least a year.
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hoops902
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Post by hoops902 on Nov 13, 2012 15:17:12 GMT -5
::Hoops: Actually, intermittant FMLA coverage is very common, and is used exactly like time off.::
It's not used EXACTLY like time off. Most people can simply ask for time off as they wish.
::I was addressing my remarks to those who were saying FMLA works differently based on your employer, and that is not true.::
Sure it does. Because how flexible/rigid your employer is determines just how easy it is for you to use your FMLA. Some employers are going ot make you follow the letter of the law.
I would compare it to collecting unemployment. The unemployment law is the unemployment law. Ease of collecting though is going to be employer dependent.
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Angel!
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Post by Angel! on Nov 13, 2012 17:54:08 GMT -5
Hoops: Actually, intermittant FMLA coverage is very common, and is used exactly like time off. Again, FMLA does NOT pay you any money. It just prevents your employer from firing you or downgrading you from full time to part time employee (with the corresponding loss of benefits). I was addressing my remarks to those who were saying FMLA works differently based on your employer, and that is not true. FMLA works the way FMLA works. I said that & was just basing it on the fact that our maternity policy changed a great deal when we brought in a new HR person. I don't know the actual law, if the previous HR person was not following law, or our new HR person is more lenient or what. The previous lady made you take blocks of time, you couldn't use 2 hours here, 4 hours there. You had to use 8 hours at a time & schedule it in advance. The new lady said you have 480 hours, do what you wish. So really I just worked as I could & some weeks I put in 20 hours & other weeks I put in 35 hours. They pretty much let me determine my schedule. I don't think FMLA requires employers to let their employees have that level of flexibility.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Nov 13, 2012 18:03:26 GMT -5
Hoops: Actually, intermittant FMLA coverage is very common, and is used exactly like time off. Again, FMLA does NOT pay you any money. It just prevents your employer from firing you or downgrading you from full time to part time employee (with the corresponding loss of benefits). I was addressing my remarks to those who were saying FMLA works differently based on your employer, and that is not true. FMLA works the way FMLA works. It's a federal law, and it has very specific benefits and limits. In some places, your employer may have policies that give you extra protections or your state may have a supplementary law (WA has the Family Care Act which grants FMLA like protection in certain instances where FMLA coverage is lacking), but you can never have worse FMLA coverage than someone else, unless your employer/leave administrator is breaking the law. If you are approved for intermittant FMLA, then you are approved for it and there is nothing your employer can do about it. At the same time, it never hurts to jump through the reasonable hoops set up by your employer, just to maintain a good work environment. I had a coworker whose wife was going through chemo for cancer. He was out 1-2 days each week, depending upon how she tolerated the chemo that week. The time can be taken as needed, and how needed.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 13, 2012 18:32:52 GMT -5
I guess I had a twelve-months maternity leave because the private school where I was working "fired" me for being pregnant. Yes, they could do that back in 1976. I got unemployment for a year (recession going on so federal extensions) although they did make me take the week I gave birth off without pay. Lol.
Nobody would hire you if you were pregnant back then. There were no laws to protect you. It wasn't in the school's best interests to let me teach the next year (although they had officially renewed my contract) because they didn't pay enough to get a substitute. I guess the unemployment law was protection enough. I was fairly bored, but I like to read. I read 2 or 3 books every day that year.
Now 12 weeks is usual. We had teachers who were married to each other that did leave alternate semesters (obviously, she went first). No more. They can have a total of 12 weeks between them. It's a school joke that that rule is named for that couple.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 13, 2012 21:44:13 GMT -5
I hope Milee checks in again so that I can borrow her flame-retardant suit ;D or at least see if she has an extra one.
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lurkyloo
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Post by lurkyloo on Nov 13, 2012 22:27:11 GMT -5
I think FMLA also doesn't apply if you are "key personnel" or some such--that is if you're the CEO they're not required to hold your job or a similar one for you. Pretty sure I'm not key, but DH might be.
Our STD apparently covers eight weeks, and the remaining four can be vacation, sick leave or unpaid--or some combination thereof. Our accountant is taking 4.5 months total, I think; I imagine a significant chunk of that is probably unpaid. Personally I'm impatient and easily bored and would probably be jonesing to get out of the house and back to work, but I guess you never know till you actually get there what's physically feasible.
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Mardi Gras Audrey
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Post by Mardi Gras Audrey on Nov 14, 2012 3:39:26 GMT -5
Susana, My DSM said that her employer was like that when she had my stepbros (Back in the late 70s/early 80s). If they found out you were pregnant, they would fire you. This was at a place where they worked in cubicles and she was a mail clerk. My mind was blown. It didn't even matter that she was married and didn't talk to the public (and they could have easily brought in someone else to sort the mail temporarily). She had worked there for several years at the time and had never missed work. She ended up being "sick" for the births and coming back after she "recovered from the flu"...
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formerroomate99
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Post by formerroomate99 on Nov 14, 2012 11:15:35 GMT -5
Zipping up flame retardant suit... Babies are wonderful. They are miracles and you will love yours like you can't even imagine. That being said, they are also boring. If you feel OK, your baby is a happy sleeper and doesn't need to be held every waking minute, it's not a big deal to work or do other things. You will not harm your otherwise happy baby by not being there 24/7. You will not fail to bond to your otherwise happy baby by not being there 24/7. You will have 18 more years of your kids' presence - most of which you will enjoy. If you absolutely have to go back to work, are physically able to and are not leaving your baby neglected, then go for it and don't feel bad. The problem is that it is almost unheard of for a 3 week old baby to sleep for more than 3-4 hours at a time and most women who have given birth are experiencing huge hormone swings 2-4 weeks post partum. So unless this woman has a night nanny and a VERY even keeled disposition, she's not going to be in any position to do a job that requires rational thought 3 weeks post partum.
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raeoflyte
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Post by raeoflyte on Nov 14, 2012 11:37:41 GMT -5
Now 12 weeks is usual. We had teachers who were married to each other that did leave alternate semesters (obviously, she went first). No more. They can have a total of 12 weeks between them. It's a school joke that that rule is named for that couple. I have to wonder if that is legal under FMLA (assuming they are large enough to have to follow FMLA, if not company policy is company policy). My dh is the only dad I know who has taken off more than 2 weeks after the birth of a child and I know his job gets irritated with him for doing it, but FMLA covers dad's too.
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