Over here in the UK we get 9 months paid and a year off (the last 3 unpaid) and so hearing that women in the US do not get any pay is absolutely shocking! I hope it catches up with other countries soon!❤️
My relatives live in England. The tax rate is crazy and fuel is like 8 dollars a gallon equivalent in US. All this lasts for life, way beyond maternity leave. Yes, US is not perfect, but I appreciate our country.
12 weeks unpaid, thats it. Here in US we quietly dread dropping our babies off in daycare when they are so small. And then daycare is so expensive easily $150- 200 per week 😩 it's tough. I'll be getting a loan..What a blessing is 9 months with a year! Hope that makes its way here 🙏
I’m taking 12 weeks maternity leave and started saving before getting pregnant. I worked the day before I delivered which was really hard, but I wanted to have as much time with baby as possible. I’m lucky to get 4 weeks full pay and 8 weeks at 60%, but honestly wish FMLA was for a longer term so I could stay home longer and not worry about losing my job.
Maternity leave in the United States sucks! It makes the time after the baby is born a little stressful. I am 3 days into my 8 weeks maternity leave and still no baby yet, so i have been stressing about my leave dwindling down and less time with my baby. I have 12 weeks FMLA with my current job, but with my last job I took 8 weeks so I decided to do the same with this pregnancy. So I have 2 months of expenses saved for maternity leave, now I wished I would have taken the full 12 weeks. Last pregnancy, I got the itch the go back to work at 6 weeks (because I was getting bored), but these pregnancy I think I’d prefer the additional time.
Working mama here! I delivered in the summer last year. And I had no idea our benefits for leave so I saved like crazy until I was ready to tell my employer about my pregnancy. Turns out I got paid 87% of my salary for the full 12 weeks. I was shocked. I was expecting nothing or 6 weeks of like 20% pay.
I also live in Portland, OR. I plan on taking my FMLA of 12 weeks , + 4 weeks added for being a union member. I pay for short term disability which adds 6-8 weeks. And then I'll use my vacation and sick time which adds 6 weeks. So I have a potential 28-30 weeks paid!
I have been wondering how to make it without maternity leave as well as I won’t be paid. I live in Georgia and I agree, I wish the US provided for maternity leave moms!! 😩
Very informative video! In Denmark we get 52 weeks of maternity leave, 14 weeks for the mom (4 weeks to be used before due date), 2 weeks for the dad (to be used right after birth) and the remaining 32 weeks to be spilt between the parents as they wish. This is financed by the state, so you will have a lower income. However some companies offer a much better deal, where you will have your full salary.
Oregon just passed a paid family leave law that goes into effect in 2023, so maybe for your next baby! It will be funded by a payroll tax on both employees and employers (maximum 1%, split 60/40) and most won't see 100% pay during the 12 weeks, but it's pretty generous compared to the nothing that so many states offer. And, being Oregon, it's currently the most progressive of such laws in the nation.
I'm so happy with 4 months fully paid maternity leave. There is finally 6 weeks paid paternity leave also in the Netherlands, but my boyfriend is a stay-at-home dad. I feel really privileged hearing other moms don't get any paid maternity leave.
I can't believe you don't have any paid maternity leave?! I'm American and thought most corporate jobs offer at least a couple weeks. That's nuts. That'd be a reason for me to not take a job honestly.
I'm from Germany where you get 1 year 'Elterngeld' (parental allowance) from the state. It means you get paid 67% of your former net income. But my biggest question is: Where do you leave your tiny cute little baby after 12 weeks maternal leave? In a day care? 😲 That is so sad. What about breast feeding than?
Most people will take their kids to daycare at 12 weeks. And employers have to have a designated area that moms can go for pumping during the work day. It can definitely be tough!
That's rediculus. You guys paying taxes which do nothing for you your family life... No sawing for your future.. Everybody is crazy about money, who makes more.. Its not about money in life it should be pro human and better quality.. I really wish that one day your country will change this. You work all the time and pay all your expenses - your government have to look after you and pay for your maternity leave. So don't be happy telling people how lucky you are to use up your savings because its wrong!
I'm due in May 2020 and work a full time job. my job does the FMLA and I have 2 weeks of PTO considering my husband can't afford everything on his own I will be back to work once I'm 4weeks PP
Same here. We have a toddler and I'm due May 2020, I have business income and a part-time job with accrued sickpay and unpaid fmla, no short term disability. My hubby doesnt want to receive the lesser pay from his SD so he will be utilizing his PTO. I'm saving, but trying to plan to return to work in about 4weeks. I dont want all the bills to get behind.
Due in April and neither of us has paid maternity. It sucks! I get STD for 6 weeks which is 70% of pay, and then the remainder will be FMLA, but I can’t stack them-I can’t begin FMLA after the STD. Trying to cushion the savings accounts now for living expenses and knowing I won’t be able to contribute toward any savings goals for a while after my son is born.
Are you taking the full 12 weeks off? We can use either 6 or 8 weeks of our sick time based on vaginal or c-section. Any time off after that, that is not medically necessary, will have to be personally funded. When we have a child I would love to fund my husband being off for a few weeks as well.
I mean you could theoretically use your regular PTO if you have any for those 12 weeks to replace for the FMLA but it does suck to use up those and you do kinda use an income.
My Job expired my paid time off in February when I am due to have a baby. I was so sad about it because I was planning on using it as a maternity leave but nope.
ssarabia 212 yeah I thought the same. I am also expecting a baby boy in May and since I have to have a scheduled c section I will have 8 weeks with short term disability pay and 12 weeks of of baby bonding time that is also paid
With all the questions I'm reading in comments, no one talking about the big answer she gave! Save and budget, so you can pay yourself when on leave. I don't see how you can expect for your employer or the government to pay you to have a baby is it like just another form of welfare? It seems like someone's been listening to Dave Ramsey
So what you’re essentially saying is “If you want to be able to afford rent and other basic necessities, don’t have a baby! Get an abortion if you get pregnant or go broke”. Yes, families should SAVE money but it’s still crazy to think that women have to lose income for GIVING BIRTH - you know, the thing that casually keeps society moving throughout the centuries? It’s pure nonsense. You don’t have to offer 100% of wages, but dang, even 50% might keep some families off the streets or keep the lights on! Sometimes people can’t even save all that much before pregnancy (minimum wage jobs for example or if you have other children). It would just be nice to not have to stress about how to pay the rent or light Bill while trying to recover from pushing out a human from your vagina or getting a human CUT OUT OF YOU. Not to mention everything after the baby is out. What if the baby has to be in the NICU? What if the mom starts to bleed? What if the ever present but not talked about post partum depression strikes? It’s just crazy that U.S laws don’t provide for women all that much in this regard. Pregnancy is a unique condition that ONLY affects individuals with a female reproductive system. How is it fair to suffer stress because of work pressure and finances because you’re contributing human life and trying to take care of them too? Women get the short end most of the time here: if you take your unpaid 12 weeks, you’re exactly that - unpaid; if you don’t take your 12 weeks and rush back to work, you get judged by society for not having “quality time” with your baby. Sometimes you apparently just can’t win. And no, “stop having kids” is not an acceptable solution here.
Ill be 20 weeks pregnant next friday when do you think would be a good time to talk to my employer about maternity leave they know im pregnant and know they only pay up to 80% of my pay but i have been nervous to bring up maternity leave just yet
