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Expectant and Postpartum Moms
Maternity Leave benefits
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Anonymous
| I worked for a private company, around 150-200 employees. I got to take off 2 months fully paid, and a third month which I used vacation time to get 2 weeks paid, then took the remaining 2 weeks leave without pay. I was thrilled, frankly. |
Anonymous
| While companies in DC must allow 16 weeks for FMLA, the Federal Government is exempt from this requirement, and only has to offer 12 weeks |
Anonymous
| I work at one of the "Fortune best companies to work for, best for working mothers, blah, blah, blah -- we don't get any paid maternity. Just 6 weeks short term disability which we pay into, and any leave beyond that you have to use your vacation. |
Anonymous
| 12 weeks paid. small law firm. its why I'm staying put for awhile longer instead of going to the government. |
Anonymous
| Question to OP: Did you sign up for the short term disability insurance on your own or was it automatically included in your benefits? I recently started a fed job but don't remember being offered short term disability insurance. Any tips on how to sign up for this on my own? |
Anonymous
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An interesting comparison of different countries.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parental_leave And no, they do not pay way more taxes... |
Anonymous
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Federal gov. 6-8 weeks short term disability. Then combining paid annual leave & unpaid FMLA time for a total of about 5 months off.
Agency offers STD but employees pay for it. The amount I pay for STD is really low and a huge benefit of paying for it out-of-pocket is that it is tax free. If your employer pays for your benefit it is not tax free so it is only 60% of your salary minus taxes. And when it comes time to file my 2008 taxes there will be 6-8 weeks of salary that don't count. |
Anonymous
| I work for a private company. We get 4 weeks STD at 100% pay (regardless of delivery method), then the employer pays for 2 weeks. The remaining 6 weeks can be taken as sick leave/vacation or unpaid. |
Anonymous
Not all federal agencies offer short term disability. If you weren't offered it, it probably isn't an option in your agency. Most don't. And you can't get this type of insurance on your own. It has to be through your employer. |
Anonymous
|
OP here. To answer the question about the STD - I work for DC Government, not Federal Government, and I had to sign up for STD. Luckily, at the time I found out i was pregnant we had a new benefits cycle, otherwise if it would have been mid-year, I wouldn't be able to sign up for it at all.
This turned out to be an interesting survey. Here's an article I found in fitpregnancy: http://www.fitpregnancy.com/maternity_leave_benefits_work/yournewlife/1064?subsection=work_money It is amazing how out of all countries US has the worst maternity benefits. Quote from the article: "Out of 173 countries worldwide, the United States is one of only five that doesn't guarantee paid leave to give birth and care for a newborn." Another issue I am concerned with is continuing to breastfeed when returning to work. In my building, I dont have any place I can go to pump, and I do want to breasfeed for at least 6 months. Another quote: "A minimum of 107 countries protect a working woman's right to breastfeed; at least 73 of them provide for paid pumping/feeding breaks. The U.S., however, does not guarantee the right to breastfeed or pump at work" |
Anonymous
| My employer told me they are required to provide "reasonable accomodations" for breastfeeding/pumping. The company is in MD, so I don't know if it's a Maryland-specific law or federal. In any case, as I found out the hard way, a bathroom constitues a "reasonable accomodation", they really don't have to do anything else. |
Anonymous
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I get 12 weeks paid. I can extend with vacation time. I currently have 28 days banked. I understand there is also a leave without pay option, but I'm not considering that at this point. We also have lactation rooms.
I previously had 0 benefits as a contractor and before that had 10 days of vacation so I feel lucky to have these benefits now. Meanwhile, colleagues from other countries feel they are taking a benefits hit compared to what they would have gotten had they stayed in their home country. I work for an international organization. |
Anonymous
| I work for a nonprofit... no paid time off and no STD offered - I can use sick and vacation time and of course FMLA.....though cannot exceed the total allowed by FMLA. |
Anonymous
| I work for a non-profit. Policy is FMLA (12 weeks unpaid), but you get 6 weeks STD + can then use any accrued sick leave, annual leave or vacation days. Our written policy provides 12 weeks, but I negotiated 20 weeks when I accepted my job (I was already pregnant). I will get 60% pay during my 6 weeks of STD, then use my 3 weeks of leave, and then go to LWOP for 11 weeks. |
Anonymous
| 18 weeks paid, but can take up to 52 weeks (remaining unpaid). Large law firm. |