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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To not check work email on mat leave?

28 replies

Wingingthis · 08/01/2021 07:39

Manager messaged me on Facebook a while back about coming to a team meeting in dec (halfway through my mat leave) as a way to keep in touch. I agreed and have messaged on Facebook since a few times just asking how things were etc. Then lockdown/tier 4 happened and I heard nothing more about the meeting.
She then announced at the begging of the meeting infront of everyone “I don’t know where she is as I haven’t heard from her. So I’ll just have to call her during the week.”
I didn’t think to check my work email as I’m on mat leave and shed messaged me on Facebook originally. I should have checked about it but tbh it slipped my mind!

OP posts:
inquietant · 08/01/2021 07:41

No, you don't need to check work email - if you're invited to a meeting they should just ring you. FFS, you're on LEAVE.

She only said that to cover up the fact she's too shit to have phoned.

Original poster
Wingingthis · 08/01/2021 07:44

Sorry should have stated the meeting was over zoom!!

OP posts:
vroc81 · 08/01/2021 07:46

My work emails are on my phone, the first couple of weeks I forwarded any from clients in case the person hadn’t noted the out of office for the next 10 months after that I’d check them because they were only the internal ones and it was nice to keep up with what was going on while a baby was napping on me... but that’s personal preference and I have quite a senior position and really like my job so it was no hardship. I think if I’d agreed to dial in to a meeting (and they are presumably paying you as a KIT day) i would have checked my emails...

vroc81 · 08/01/2021 07:48

But to add if I had agreed someone might have checked with me I had the details and wouldn’t have announced that at the beginning of a meeting so that is unreasonable of her!

KatherineJaneway · 08/01/2021 07:51

In my workplace women do check occasionally as they have 'keeping in touch days' so correspond with their manager over when these might be and what would be useful to attend.

inquietant · 08/01/2021 07:53

@KatherineJaneway

In my workplace women do check occasionally as they have 'keeping in touch days' so correspond with their manager over when these might be and what would be useful to attend.
In my workplace KIT days are arranged without using work email if that's the staff member's preference to save them wading through work stuff!
MNnicknameforCVthreads · 08/01/2021 07:54

Yanbu, although depends a bit more on your role.

Any courteous manager manager should have confirmed the date/time of the meeting on fb and told you the zoom invitation was in your work email.

When I went on mat leave at one of the big banks they disabled my email!

triceratops12 · 08/01/2021 07:56

You shouldn't need to check your emails however you could have messaged your manager to confirm the if they meeting was going ahead surely? Rather than presuming it wouldn't.

Martinisarebetterdirty · 08/01/2021 08:01

Most big firms disable your emails when you are on mat leave. No you shouldn’t be checking work emails but you could have been in touch to check. It’s a difficult line to tread as a manager when you invite people to KIT days as they are not mandatory and you don’t want to look as though you are pushing them to attend.

MrsDThomas · 08/01/2021 08:07

Absolutely not. You don’t work. Its leave.

MaMaD1990 · 08/01/2021 08:09

YANBU. I'd be sending an email to everyone is attendance but address it to her saying you're disappointed to have missed the meeting. Next time can she ensure she let's you know the details so you can join in. Thanks so much, hugs and kisses.

Iwonder08 · 08/01/2021 08:09

You shouldn't check your work emails, any communication should be done via your personal email/phone

Mercedes519 · 08/01/2021 08:10

I always use a personal channel (as provided by the maternity person) as I wouldn’t expect someone to check a work device.

As a manager I believe the onus is on me to make sure I communicate with you (that is my JOB after all) as you have quite enough to do!

Lurkingforawhile · 08/01/2021 08:10

As a PP said my organisation disables email accounts during mat leave. KIT days are organised by phone.

KihoBebiluPute · 08/01/2021 08:15

You absolutely shouldn't be checking work email while on leave

Your employers should have a way to get in touch with you that is used only in a very limited way, in accordance with your agreement eg to check on your welfare or arrange KIT time. You are only allowed 10 KIT days over the course of your maternity leave and doing any work whatsoever makes that day count as one of the 10. If you open your work inbox once a week while on maternity leave you would become legally ineligible for maternity pay on the 11th week of doing so.

KatherineJaneway · 08/01/2021 08:21

In my workplace KIT days are arranged without using work email if that's the staff member's preference to save them wading through work stuff!

In mine its left for the woman to decide how she wants to be contacted. Some use personal email, some choose work email. The point is they are not expected to work, the emails are only a means of arranging KIT activities.

Jobsharenightmare · 08/01/2021 08:39

In my Trust this would have been arranged via phone call. There is no expectation of checking email as we get an out of office saying on mat leave until X.

LemonBreeland · 08/01/2021 08:55

In previous roles I've had, I have not been able to access work emails on ML. It is unreasonable to expect you to check them.

vdbfamily · 08/01/2021 09:25

There should have been an agreed means of communication before your maternity leave, maybe personal email. I don't like my team using social media platforms to contact me as I am not guaranteed to look at them. I think if you had agreed to attend a meeting you should have checked out whether it was happening and asked for the details.

Ideasplease322 · 08/01/2021 09:25

You shouldn’t be checking work emails, in my company the account would be disabled after two months. Also the mailbox would have reached capacity before this point.

However you could have contacted her to check about the meeting.

gingerbiscuits · 08/01/2021 09:31

50:50 to be honest. She should have ensured you knew the details but you should have followed it up?

IntermittentParps · 08/01/2021 09:41

50:50 to be honest. She should have ensured you knew the details but you should have followed it up?

It's not 50:50 at all. The OP is not being U and her manager is a bad manager who needs to learn a) how to communicate with people on mat leave and b) not to behave indiscreetly in front of colleagues.

The OP should note this incident with HR and request that the manager be fully apprised of how to deal with mat leave issues.

wibdib · 08/01/2021 10:01

If she contacted you via Facebook and you responded, then I think it’s perfectly reasonable to say that you had assumed that she would continue in the same way rather than expecting you to wade through what could potentially be a massive full inboxseveral timesin the hope of catching an email that you didn’t know was going to be sent.

Katela18 · 08/01/2021 10:30

The manager was completely in the wrong to call you out in front of colleagues regardless!

However, having just returned from mat leave I did not check my emails. Also correspondence to organise meetings or KIT days was done via personal channels. I also wouldnt have expected to have to check my emails to check it was still going ahead, I would have expected that my manager would contact me to confirm.

YonderTweek · 08/01/2021 10:37

My work disabled my work email when I was on maternity leave. If they needed to contact me they always emailed my personal email address or just whatsapped me. I thought that was how you do it.