unpaid maternity leave

how much maternity leave do you plan to take if you're not getting paid for it? My vacation calendar runs from september 1- august 31, and i am due August 20th. I found out today that while I am out in September i cannot use any of my vacation time for next year since I will not be here to "accrue" the time. So basically it looks like I am only going to get paid whatever disability weeks i have left in september and the rest unpaid. Just was wondering what you were planning on doing if you are getting unpaid leave.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I don't have a real "job." I babysit for a little girl. So I don't get paid when I don't babysit. I am taking 2 weeks off. I can't afford to take off more time then that!

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I'm going to take 2 mos, I'm trying very hard to make it to the end. I have a scheduled cs on march 29. I really can't go back earlier than that because my job is physical.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I;m not getting paid either . My job makes you use your vacation time...and I have none. So, I am planning to take 6 weeks. I'd LOVE to take at least 8 weeks though!

Re: unpaid maternity leave

im seriously debating taking the full 12 weeks my company gives for Maternitiy leave. This is #1 for me and i dont want to rush back. Then again who knows i may have to come back sooner. i will definatly use whatever sick and vacation time i have left just so i get something and by the time i come back it will be on or around December 1st so it will only be 1 month that i have no time left.

Then again i am still very early so this can all change as it gets closer....

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I'm planning on taking either 7 or 8 weeks. I'll use my two weeks vacation and then 5 or 6 weeks, I'll be on disability.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

6 weeks disability at 70% pay, then I'll use 2 weeks of vacation. I might take the last 4 weeks unpaid - we're really trying to save every cent so that we aren't struggling too hard without pay.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I'm a teacher so I first have to use all my sick and personal days I have banked which I have 36 days banked. If I need more than I will go on disability. Hopefully LO cooperates and doesn't come before his due date because from my due date to the end of the year it is like 32 days so I would just make it without going on disability. I would then be able to have the whole summer off and would not return to work until September!

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I'm taking 12 weeks and the last 4 will be unpaid If I didn't have 2 weeks PTo saved up, I would only be getting paid for 6 weeks.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I took 4 months off and lived on credit cards

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I carry private short term disability insurance plus I have vacation and sick time from last year to use up. I was determined to take 12 weeks and not feel it.

Message edited 2/15/2012 1:54:33 PM.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I am about to accept a new job (with better work / life balance) but I'm going from what my current company offers (8 weeks full pay, 4 weeks at 50%) to just 6 weeks paid. I was always planning on taking 3 months off so I will probably be taking 4 weeks unpaid once my vacation time runs out.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I am most likely taking the full 12 weeks, unfortunately unpaid. except for the 6 weeks of short term disability. (Which I still cannot get over the amount of short term disability in NY, its unreal.)

I am going to let them know that I will come back sooner if I feel up for it.

It will def be a tight couple of months.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

Can they make an exception for you to carry time over?

I was planning on taking 2 weeks unpaid based on the amount of vaca I currently have.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

o paid leave.o vacation time. its horrrssseshhhittt.. but gonna take about 2 months...only having this baby once kwim?

Re: unpaid maternity leave

Re: unpaid maternity leave

Posted by BBin2012

Posted by prunepie

o paid leave.o vacation time. its horrrssseshhhittt.. but gonna take about 2 months...only having this baby once kwim?

plus once going back to work have to pay for daycare anyway!!

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I have to sit down and crunch numbers after we do our taxes (we may owe this year).

I would like to take all 12 weeks, but since I only will get paid my vacation time, I might only take 8-10 weeks instead.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I get paid for whatever vacation days I have remaining (which will be very few, since I took many days off for IF treatments), and then that's it. I get short-term disability for 6 weeks, but that's something like $174 per week - whoopee!! The 6 weeks of disability overlaps with my vacation days, but you don't actually start getting disability until your vacation days run out, so if I end with 5 vacation days left, I will only get 5 weeks of disability. If I take the full 12 weeks of FMLA, I won't get anything for the last 6. I really don't want to go back earlier, but I might have to. I work in a school with a 6-week summer program, so I might go back for the last week of the program in August, so that I get paid for that week and the subsequent 2-3 weeks vacation.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

thanks all, good to hear what others plans are. i am going to request that my vacation time for this year be carried over, but even then it would be maybe 4 weeks (in conjunction with disability) so i'm going to have to take a least a month unpaid (undecided on if i should come back after 8 weeks or 12 weeks)

Re: unpaid maternity leave

2 weeks vacation. 17 days STD at full pay. So it adds up to about 5.5 weeks.
I want to stay home 12 so that would be 6.5 weeks unpaid.

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I'm trying not to take any. It really sucks. I would have to use all my vacation and sick (i don't have much) and then DH will take paternity leave and he gets 8 weeks paid.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I'm taking 6 weeks unpaid (or whatever disability $ I get) and that's it. We can make do without pay for 6 weeks, but ill need to get my butt back to work ASAP.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

For my first I had unpaid maternity leave. I figured I would take the 8 weeks after the c section. But doctors took me out of work at week 34 and it scared me to death. I ended up having DS at week 38, so I had 12 weeks with no pay. Scary, but we did it.

Re: unpaid maternity leave

I actually have hardly any annual time for my maternity leave. I will only have about four weeks of paid Maternity leave. I used all of my annual and sick time when I had DS. I got paid for a good 8 weeks with him.
With this pregnancy, I just didn't have time over the past two years to accrue enough. Plus I took alot of time off the past year.
I'm taking my full 12 weeks and most likely more time then that. WIth DS I took 6 months off and probably will do the same this time. It won't be easy being on one salary but we are going to try to make it.

Message edited 2/15/2012 7:05:41 PM.