Employee of store didn't get maternity leave - WWYD?

[Anonymous]

Come on, guys - this isn’t tough. At four weeks post partum a woman is likely still bleeding and exhausted. The right thing to do is guarantee her job for 12 weeks of leave. The store could hire temps if they needed the coverage since they aren’t paying the mother.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DONATE. that is the key word. I do not want money (taxes) forcibly taken out my paycheck to pay for someone's choice to have a baby. She and her partner should have waited until they had enough saved up. Also, have on one here EVER heard the word adoption??

Shut up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You all realize that women in other countries have this problem as well? Paid maternity leave is often at 40 or 60%. And a lot of women return to work because they need 100% of their pay

Yes and they pay 60% of their income in taxes. When will you get it through your granite heads that having a baby is a choice! I did not ask the taxpayer to pay for my maternity leave and we should not pay for yours!! Move to Europe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Come on, guys - this isn’t tough. At four weeks post partum a woman is likely still bleeding and exhausted. The right thing to do is guarantee her job for 12 weeks of leave. The store could hire temps if they needed the coverage since they aren’t paying the mother.

+1.

[Anonymous]

What would I do, as per the title? I would advise her to get a better job, and/ or not have more babies if she is uncomfortable with her work terms regarding leave. She is the only one responsible for her choice.

[Anonymous]

I worked for SUNY and had no paid maternity leave, but at least they held my job for me. But I ended up leaving it anyway because I was paid less than FT daycare cost.

Being a mother in this country kind of sucks

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Being a mother in this country kind of sucks

As many more women are soon to find out after today.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Come on, guys - this isn’t tough. At four weeks post partum a woman is likely still bleeding and exhausted. The right thing to do is guarantee her job for 12 weeks of leave. The store could hire temps if they needed the coverage since they aren’t paying the mother.

You've obviously never worked. You can't just "hire temps" for all positions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Definitely say something to management. If you're a frequent customer, you would notice a pregnant worker who then returned two weeks later. You could ask what the policy is and how "supportive" they are around family rights. You can speak to this in generalities without ever mentioning that you spoke with this worker.

Is this a local store?

+1 for this. Their response probably will be that she is welcome to take leave but it would be unpaid. Apparently that is the law.

I say apparently because I ran into a similar situation at my work about 10 years ago. I am a teacher and I work for a large school system in the DMV. All teachers are allowed to take maternity leave but they are only paid for it if they use their own sick leave. One of our new teachers had her baby in October and was back to work after three weeks (we receive 15 days of leave at the beginning of the school year). She used her 15 days and came back. It was appalling to me and others. Anyway, it took some doing but one of my colleagues and I were finally (!!!) allowed to donate leave to her so that this young woman could have eight weeks of maternity leave. It took us two weeks to get the school system to agree that they would ALLOW us to DONATE our leave to her. The whole thing still makes me crazy!

Anyway, the employee may not have enough leave saved up to take a paid maternity leave. It completely sucks but apparently it is the law. You are allowed to take leave but your employer is not required to pay you for it.

Hold up! There was no short term disability??? I also work for a large school system (FCPS) and have had two children in the 20 years I've worked here. With both deliveries, I had to use the first 20 days of my own leave, and then short-term disability kicked in. I had a c-section with each delivery and was covered through 8 weeks. If I wanted to stay home longer, I would have paid myself through use of my own sick leave. We do not have a "sick leave bank" here. If you are sick for more than 5 days within a 30-day period or have an ongoing issue, you use short-term disability.

Nope, at least not then or to our knowledge. Because she was back after 15 days. I texted my friend when I saw your response. Just heard back from her. Both of us remember HR saying that she had to come back if she wanted to be paid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Come on, guys - this isn’t tough. At four weeks post partum a woman is likely still bleeding and exhausted. The right thing to do is guarantee her job for 12 weeks of leave. The store could hire temps if they needed the coverage since they aren’t paying the mother.

You've obviously never worked. You can't just "hire temps" for all positions.

This is a health food store not a nuclear reactor. I think they’ll be able to find someone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Come on, guys - this isn’t tough. At four weeks post partum a woman is likely still bleeding and exhausted. The right thing to do is guarantee her job for 12 weeks of leave. The store could hire temps if they needed the coverage since they aren’t paying the mother.

You've obviously never worked. You can't just "hire temps" for all positions.

This is a health food store not a nuclear reactor. I think they’ll be able to find someone.

Again, you've obviously never worked.

[Anonymous]

The responses in this thread are bleak. Based on today's scotus decision and PPs' contributions in this thread, only the most entitled, privileged Americans should be allowed to procreate. Or, rather, do so without suffering financial, physical, and emotional consequences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Come on, guys - this isn’t tough. At four weeks post partum a woman is likely still bleeding and exhausted. The right thing to do is guarantee her job for 12 weeks of leave. The store could hire temps if they needed the coverage since they aren’t paying the mother.

You've obviously never worked. You can't just "hire temps" for all positions.

This is a health food store not a nuclear reactor. I think they’ll be able to find someone.

OP. That's what really irritates me - they are always hiring new people. It would not be difficult to give her extra time, it's not like they'll fill her spot and then have no open positions. It was very clearly a manipulative tactic.

[Anonymous]

This is the last straw.

I’m moving to the Netherlands as soon as I can!