Returning to work after maternity leave

[ehl-e-chamman]

Re: Returning to work after maternity leave

@parisbynight

When did you return to work after the baby?
Did you return to the same job or found a new one?

1st baby: 12 wks (3 mo)
2nd baby: 6 wks
Returned to same job, same dept … diff hours after baby one. worked exclusively overnite so husband(worked usual day time hours) and i could hand off infant care to each other. had no babysitter/family help. it was brutal but we manged to do it for 1.5 years.
hired a nanny after that and went bk to working a mix of nights and days (as before kids) and continued after baby two.

caveat: i dont work as a regular hired employee for anyone … so all of the above was a personal choice.

For those who returned to old job, were you given the same position, flexible hours?

see above.

For those who found a new job, was it hard to bag a new role after having a gap in your cv?

@Sara516

I’d really like to hear from moms in the USA, our maternity leave here is pathetic compared to nearly every other country incl Europe & Canada!

in USA …The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which was passed in 1993, guarantees that women can take up to twelve weeks without pay while keeping the same health insurance. Additionally, their position will be held while gone, or else a job with equal pay, benefits, and status will be given.
in my state (california) … you have
California paid family leave (PFL) … paid 6 wks
California Family Rights Act (CFRA) … unpaid 12 wks + guarantee of same job. this is essentially FMLA.
Pregnancy disability … up to 4 mo. unpaid + guarantee of no job loss

CFRA and pregnancy disability can be combined. each of the above categories have eligibility requirements.