Back to work - part 1

I have about six weeks before I go back to work...and already I've been off since 7 July (16 weeks today).

In South Africa, an employee is entitled to at least four consecutive months’ maternity leave BUT the company doesn't have to pay you a cent. However, if you're a South African citizen, you can claim something like 45% of your salary from UIF. This amount is capped at about R12 000 or thereabouts.

I'm fuzzy on the % as this doesn't apply to me.

At my company, we get paid 100% of salary for the four months, as long as we've been working there for 13 months by the time you go off on maternity leave.

You with me so far?

So the twins.

I am quite bolshy so I asked them if I get double maternity leave since I'm having twins (!). Hey, it was worth a try. Of course, they said no.

In the beginning of the pregnancy, I was just talking nonsense as I usually do :) but actually I had a point in there somewhere because I hadn't realised how high-risk the pregnancy was.

I had the two bleeding incidents, the doctor told me to work half days from 28 weeks and of course, my waters broke very suddenly at 32 weeks.

I was reluctant to start working half days and going on early maternity leave because I didn't want the before-babies leave to eat into these precious 4 months, or 87 days as my company calls it on our e-leave system.

Saffy told me that in New Zealand, they get 12 months unpaid. 12 months!!!! And if they need to go off work from 28 weeks due to health reasons, it doesn't cut into the 12-month entitlement. How cool is that?

I wish we had that extra maternity sick leave too – maybe I could have kept them in longer if I’d stopped work properly at 28 weeks? I could feel at 30 weeks that I was DONE and really should have started proper maternity leave then but as I said if you take your leave early, you simply cut short your time with the baby(ies)/. It’s terrible.

Anyway, I have a fabulous boss. Seriously fabulous.

This pic was taken at my work baby shower and that's my boss in the middle, laughing with a mouth full of food :)

Other than my husband and then my friends from the infertility support group, he has been my biggest supporter through this whole crazy journey.

He knew every single thing about the whole IVF process. We have the kind of relationship where I could say to him "don't ask me anything; I'll tell you when I'm ready" and I would. This is when I was a bit teary at my desk....

So when I mentioned to other female colleagues that the doctor said I have to take things even easier, he overheard and immediately said, "well, from tomorrow, you'll be working half days".

Just like that; no fighting.

My plan was to take my 87 days (!) and then add on my 18 days annual leave and also take a few days' unpaid leave up until the end of Dec and go back in January.

But when the twins came early, the plan got messed up (the first of many plans!). I obviously took off the first four hospital days as maternity leave. But then after that I told him I'd work from home while they were in NICU and he was fine with that.

So now I have to technically go back on 18 December because we decided that it's just not worth taking half the month as unpaid and losing thousands of rands seeing as the babies are so expensive.

My boss then said to me, "well come in on the 18th, show your face (n.b.) and sort out your emails and so on, and then work from home the rest of the month"

Is he not a winner boss?

As I said, fabulous!!!


By the way, there's never been any question in my mind of going back to work or not...but I will have to save all that thinking for another post as this is my contribution for the 30-minute blog challenge and 25 minutes are up!

P.S. The babies are 16 weeks today. Now getting very cute :)

Bed rest, maternity leave and beyond

These pictures were taken last week when I got back from Preggi Bellies. 25 weeks, 1 day.

I know you think I'm knee-deep in denial (I probably am) but I still don't feel as big as I am. I mean, this is GIGANTIC. I still do a double-take when I walk past a mirror or window.

On the bright side, I'm carrying enough baby to equal someone else's 33-week singleton pregnancy.

I don't mind being big because they're my beloved babies but I am scared of looking like this.

Anyway, back to what I actually want to talk about...

***********************************

We've known that my goal is to get to 36 weeks but I wanted to know from the doctor about when to stop work, etc, etc.

This was all before the bed rest episode this week.

He said he’d recommend I stop work at 32 weeks which is 4 weeks before the babies come…or at least work from home and not go in for meetings or anything like that.

This is because I'll have over 4kg of baby and could go into premature labour if I'm too active.

My job is not really active but I do have lots of meetings and since the building is huge, that's a lot of walking. Even going to the toilet (bathroom/ loo :)) is a walk from one end of the building to the other.

In South Africa, we get 30 days' sick leave for every 3 years worked. And you can't accumulate it. If you haven't used up your sick leave and you start a new 3-year cycle, the old leave all falls away.

I had 11 days' sick leave before these 4 days of bed rest (but I will only put in for 4 half days since I've been working a bit from home - thank God for technology). The remaining 9 days has to last me until April 2011! It's because I had those two laparotomies with 4 weeks' sick leave each time. Good thing I only took 3 weeks to recover from the last op!

So basically using up the sick leave is not an option...

Now the maternity leave - in South Africa everyone is entitled to 4 months' leave BUT your company does not have to pay you while you're on maternity leave.

My company pays 100% of salary which is great and usually what people do is they add on any annual leave they've accumulated to increase those 4 months to 5.

Of course I don't think about the future - if I need a holiday, I take my leave. Hence Ireland :)

All that to say this...

I spoke to my boss and he is totally fine with me working from home from 32 weeks (we'll see if I actually make it to 32 weeks because this week has thrown things out in my mind...) and then when I want to go on "actual maternity leave", I just phone in and he will activate it. Very nice.

I've done some planning and I'm thinking to start my leave the last week of July and then my maternity leave ends about 2 days before the end of November.

If I then add up all my accumulated annual leave, I should be able to almost make it to the end of December. I may take the last 3 days as unpaid leave so that I start in January, or else I'll just go back then.

It will be dead quiet anyway (I'm in financial services) which is always a good time to catch up on things and start getting used to leaving the babies in the mornings.

Now afterwards (from January), I haven't quite decided if I'm going to go back full-time or only work a half day.

We can do it because my coaching business will be able to supplement my half-day salary...but I'm still not sure. I like lots of cushioning, finance-wise, and am just not sure if this is the best way to go.

Because obviously our monthly expenses will go up with the full-time nanny, all the disposable nappies (diapers), formula (if there's a problem breastfeeding), doctor's bills, etc.

So what do you think I should do?

If you're pregnant, what do you intend to do? How much time will you take off and from when?

And if you're not pregnant YET, have you thought about what you'll do when you do fall pregnant and have your baby/ies?