To go for a promotion I can only do for 3 months?

[AmyRhodes]

I'm a teacher. My Head of Department goes on maternity leave in December. I'm her deputy. In June, my headteacher and two deputy headteachers all verbally told me I will be covering her maternity leave from late December/January.

I've since found out I'm pregnant, EDD April 15.

Basically, I want the role (and the appropriate maternity pay), but I'll only be able to do it for about 3 months before my own mat leave starts.

The role has been promised to me, but I'm fairly sure my school will be planning an official application/interview process around November/December. By this time, I'm likely to be showing. I doubt I will get anything in writing anytime soon.

What should I do?

Presumably you will want to have told your employer you're pregnant by then anyway so that risk assessments etc can be done and you'll need time off for scans?

Honestly, I wouldn't and I wouldn't let my staff member cover in those circumstances as you wouldn't be able to fulfil the terms of the maternity cover. Presumably you want to return after maternity leave, so taking the role without telling them you're pregnant isn't likely to do your relationship with your employer any favours!

But surely since they've promised me the role verbally and discouraged me from taking another internal promotion, then not giving me the role would be pregnancy discrimination?

Not sure it would be discrimination - surely there is a strong argument that the maternity cover should be able to offer continuity (that's why they need formal cover, rather than just people stepping in as and when?). Honestly, if it was me I wouldn't take the role if I wasn't planning on being there for the full period - it's not in the best interest of the school/kids to have 3 people doing the role over the school year.

I hear what you're saying @Seeyounexttue but at this stage in my life I'm prioritising what's best for me and my child.

That happened in my kids school. Not a problem.

Go for it. You'll get better maternity pay and will have the experience to add to your CV.

That's my thinking @JagerPlease

Even more frustrating is the fact that before my HoD got pregnant my Headteacher was planning a restructure that would change both our roles and make me HoD on a permanent basis. Her mat leave has put that on the back burner, with school (understandably) believing I will be happy to do the mat cover with a view for the permanent restructure to happen when my boss gets back.

Now my own pregnancy has put the job out of reach again!

Timing!

Please tell the role is not in GCSE / final years of secenodry schools because if it is you will be buggerying up those childrens chances because someone like you decided they wanted to be a meterity cover so they get higher meternity pay but didnt tell the school until so far down the line they could not get someone to cover the last 5 months so me and 80 other children in the last 2 years of our school had a series of supply teachers that was only there for 1 or 2 weeks so no continitly and the school results for that year were the worst ever for that subject.

I hope for one if you do this i hope someone does it too your children because everyone that year dropped 2 or 3 grades. And because it was Maths most of the cohort HAD to resit it again in Collage and 2 of my friends lost the 6th form place.

Sorry, meant to @ @theymademejoin

I'm not sure it would be discrimination for them not to give you the job. You can't actually do the job (as in cover the maternity leave) so it's pointless and disruptive.

Yes yes its your legal right to do so but its childrens bloody future and there plans you are scuppering if it is cover the 2 most important years of schooling.

Go for it OP.

I've just accepted a promotion today at 25 + 3.

I agree with worried

If there's an interview process not sure why would you get anything in writing now. If it was a permanent place it would be discrimination but they need someone to cover for x time and you can't fulfil that contract so can't see why it would be.

Well it wouldn't be discrimination if the cover was for 9 months and you couldn't do two thirds of it.

No I wouldn’t do it and am surprised you are even thinking of doing it

Congratulations @SadTrombone

@worridmum
I can tell that you had a traumatic education.

Yes, the job would cover KS4 and I can assure you that if you knew me, my department and my school you would appreciate that I am the best person for the role. There are no other members of my department that have relevant KS4 experience and if given the opportunity I would be able to spend my 4 months training a colleague who could take over the role when I leave.

Your assessment that I would "bugger up" the education of my students by doing half a maternity cover is hyperbolic.

To those who don't think it would be pregnancy/maternity discrimination, this is from equalityhumanrights.com

Particularly note what it says about "promised" promotions and promotions to fixed terms positions.

But @greendale17 I'm not simply "thinking about going for it." I've literally already been promised it, three times, by three separate members of my senior leadership team.

They even had me withdraw from another post that I could be doing and earning from now.

I think you should absolutely go for it, OP. You have to prioritise yourself and your career. Ignore the nay-sayers.

Thank you @Brambleboo 🌷

I agree that I should put myself and the little bean first, but I also genuinely believe I'm entitled to it.

Yes it would be discriminatory for them not to give it to you because you are pregnant. No its not unfair of you to take it. Because you're a teacher and obviously care about your kids just make sure you give them lots of notice.
Just to cover your back- try and get it informally in an email now.
Do tell them- they'll need to be prepared. And explain about the other internal promotion (which i assume was permanent?)

If you've already been promised it why are they doing interviews? If you interview now and don't get it presumably you'll have a case for discrimination. It'll be your word against theirs that they ever promised the role though.

You don't need to tell work until 15 weeks before your due date so that's roughly 22nd Dec. So you could just not tell them and see what happens at the interview?

How long will you have off on mat leave? Will the mat cover you're covering be over before you're back? What role will you go back to after mat leave?

No its not but you want to go for it but don't sugar coat it at all the school will struggle to get a maternity cover for a maternity cover so final exam students will most likely end up with a string of supply teachers. So yes you might be the "best for the job" but you cannot do the job since you are leaving half way through it so you are making the children you are teaching lives far harder then necessary.

And if you do it I hope your children get such a selfish teacher and their grades drop as much as i experienced. (you wont be happy i bet because it would be your child effected).

Tell the School you are pregnant and will be leaving 1/3 of the way through (that's if you have a perfect pregnancy and you could have severe morning sickness so go off ill before you have trained up anyone you are being stupidly selfish on so many levels.

Are you telling me with a stright face that Children will learn just as well from a string of supply teacher then a single teacher?

Normally i would say go for it but because it is the most important exams for children aka they dont do as well as the could of done if DOES effect their future. 1 grade could mean if they get a place at a good Sixth form or end up meaning they can longer do A levels.

But you are all set prioritizing yourself and you unborn child above the futures of the children you will be letting down forcing them into a shit position.

I do care @Ketayuzu Thank you for appreciating that just because I want what I was promised and what I've worked towards for years somehow means I don't care about the kids.

Yes, the other role was permanent. I have an excellent relationship with my bosses and I think once I get my 12 week scan I will be upfront with them. I'll tell them that this is the situation but I still feel I'm entitled to the role because they've promised it to me. I know they value me and they were beginning to restructure permanently in order to retain me. It really won't be that expensive to pay me HoD wage while I'm on mat leave and they know how important it is that I get the role on my CV.

Good idea about having something informal over email. I might actually have something already....

The pp's who are saying it will mess up the kids' education - it's a management/co-ordination cover, not a teaching cover. Therefore it will presumably have no impact on teaching arrangements. Maternity cover will need to be put in place separately for teaching.

If the op does the job well for 4 months, including putting a good transition plan in place (as presumably the person she issued replacing will also do), it should have very little, if any, impact on the kids.