How long is maternity leave

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All guidance, including how to use the Pension Wise service. Getting started, getting the most out of savings, problems. How to invest, types of investing, buying and managing. Help with meeting goals, tax-friendly saving, saving for children. To help you take time off work before and after your baby is born, you qualify for maternity leave and maternity pay.

For help and support, go to the Maternity Action website. To find out more about eligibility for maternity leave, see the GOV. UK website. To help you get an idea of your income during this time, use this Maternity Pay Calculator. Just be aware that if you decide not to return to work after 52 weeks, you might have to pay back any extra.

Some employers might offer you occupational maternity pay, sometimes known as Contractual Maternity Pay. This will be more than Statutory Maternity Pay. You must give your employer binding notice to end your maternity leave for either you or your partner to be eligible for Shared Parental Leave. You might be able to claim Maternity Allowance. You can download an application form on the GOV. MoneyHelper is the new, easy way to get clear, free, impartial help for all your money and pension choices.

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This is made up of 26 weeks of ordinary maternity leave and 26 weeks of additional maternity leave. You have a range of rights during this period and can also request that your employer provides flexible working arrangements if you decide to return to work at the end of your leave.

Your employment terms for example, your pension contributions are protected while you're on Statutory Maternity Leave. If you're made redundant while on Statutory Maternity Leave, you also have extra rights. If you're pregnant, your employer must protect your health and safety, and you may have the right to paid time off for antenatal care. You're also protected against unfair treatment. If you enjoy your work and like the people you work with, you may have mixed feelings when you go on maternity leave.

Try to make the most of these few weeks before your baby is born. It's also a good opportunity to make some new friends. You may make new pregnant friends you want to keep in touch with at antenatal classes , or you may get to know more people living close by. Find out about your employee rights when you're on maternity, adoption or parental leave. You may have decided that you're going to spend some time at home with your baby, or you may be planning to return to work, either full time or part time, fairly soon after the birth.

If you plan to go back to work, start thinking in advance about who will look after your baby. It's not always easy to make childcare arrangements, and it may take you some time. You may have a relative who's willing to look after your child. If not, contact the Family Information Service at your local authority for a list of registered childminders and nurseries in your area.

You may also want to think about organising care in your own home, either on your own or sharing with other parents. Care in your own home does not need to be registered, but make sure your carer is experienced and trained to care for babies. Make sure you know what these are and what to do if you have any problems or you're denied your rights. Parents of children aged 16 and under, or of disabled children aged 18 and under, are entitled to request a flexible working pattern.

If you're a father-to-be or the partner of someone who is pregnant — including same-sex partner — you could have the right to paternity leave.

The federal Family and Medical Leave Act FMLA signed into law in requires employers to provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for several medical conditions, as well as the birth of a baby. To be eligible for unpaid maternity or parental leave, you must:. If the parent has pre-birth complications, she may be able to take part of the leave under the medical component. Before the law was enacted, the U.

There are still gaping holes in the FMLA , however. For example, the act exempts small employers defined as those having fewer than 50 employees from having to offer unpaid leave. Though it's worth noting that a few states, including California and New Jersey, include pregnancy benefits as part of the state's disability insurance plan, which provides at least a partial offset of lost income.

California, for instance, offers up to four weeks of paid leave for normal pregnancies and up to eight weeks for mothers who undergo a cesarean section. Though that's helpful, it still falls far short of the benefits afforded to Canadian parents. If you're planning to take maternity or parental leave, check with both your employer and your state's employment commission to see what types of benefits may be available.

The downside of the lack of pregnancy leave and benefits in the United States is significant. Not only does a mother need time to physically recover after giving birth, but families also need time to adjust to new routines and sleep patterns. If a mother has to rush back to work after giving birth because she cannot afford the lack of a paycheck , she may not be as effective at her job compared to if she was rested and had her family life settled.

Because the Canadian government provides benefits and leave for employees, new mothers and fathers can take paid leave and be confident that they will have jobs waiting for them at the end of the leave period. When it comes to pregnancy benefits, Canada is a much more generous country. No, it does not. In fact, it's the only developed country in the world that doesn't offer parents some type of paid leave benefits.

The U. But the average maternity leave may be shorter as parents head back to work to make up for lost earnings. For example, the typical maternity leave for women is around 10 weeks. Parental leave refers to time that parents can take off from work for reasons related to child care.

This may include the care of a newborn but it can also be used in situations in which care is required for adopted children or older children who are still minors. Whether you're paid for parental leave or not can depend on your employer and whether they offer those benefits to employees. Again, the U. American Pregnancy Association.

Department of Labor. Maternity leave is usually defined as the time the mother takes off work for the birth or adoption of a child. Paternity leave is typically defined as the time the father takes off work. Through the Family and Medical Leave Act FMLA , the federal government guarantees 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for the birth of a newborn or adopting a child. But the law only applies to certain employees at certain companies more on that below.

Some states and individual employers offer paid parental leave, but not all. A number of companies, large and small, have voluntarily opted to offer paid leave. Some generous policies grant a number of months or more. That said, only 17 percent of American workers have access to paid family leave through private employers, according to the U.

Bureau of Labor Statistics. Just six states — California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Washington — plus the District of Columbia guarantee paid family leave, which is typically funded through employee-paid payroll taxes and administered through disability insurance programs.

Employees of the federal government now receive 12 weeks of paid parental leave after the Federal Employee Paid Leave Act went into effect in October Enacted in as a way to guarantee parents time with their new kids without worrying about their jobs, the FMLA also requires employers to allow you to return to your position or a similar one with the same compensation package at the end of your week leave. You do if:.