Perfect maternity leave?

[FawnFrenchieMum]

Posting here for traffic. Just did fun

If you were making the rules on Stat Maternity pay, what would be the best ideal package and why?

I think 12 months full pay for me. Any longer I’d be too out of touch with the work and company. Any less feels like I’m leaving them ‘too young.

I did go back to work after 6&9 months respectively with my too, basically due to pay (the package was increased between child one & two).

Well, if you're asking what I'd like, probably 18 years' full pay! If you're asking what might be reasonable - 12 months for mum and then 12 months for dad might be nice? (I think some Scandinavian countries do something like this?)

I do think fathers of twins should be entitled to more paternity leave, at least - would be so hard if you had twins and your partner could only take a few weeks off.

I would love 12 months full pay but being more realistic I would like SMP extended to cover the full 12 months rather than 9 months like it currently is and an increase in the SMP rate.

From a paternity leave perspective I would like to see an increase to 4 weeks from the current 2.

Good points re paternity. 4-8 weeks paid would be ideal for me.

And yes I mean reasonable as lovely as 18 years paid leave sounds.

I guess it could be brought in line with when free childcare hours start.

Problem is I think it would need to be funded by the government/social security.

I earn a good wage and I can’t see anyone wanting to employ me if they know they’d still be liable to pay me that same salary for years without me actually doing any work.

I'd like a year full pay, and six weeks full pay for my DP.

I think smp should be raised to more a liveable standard and increased to 12 months. Potentially employers footing more of the bill. Would be great to get full pay but I think it would employers employing women unless it was capped at a certain amount.

Would be a nice option to have up to 24 months off like other counties so working parents can benefit from the 30 hours free childcare. Or potentially for the first year a period of time off that allows for children to be sick and it's paid time off. So many viruses in the first year a few European counties do this even up to the age of 18. But not sure if this instead of parental leave.

I think parents who have twins should get more time off and babies they are born a lot earlier. Women who miscarry or have a medical abortion should get paid time off from 12 weeks. 24 weeks is the current time off to get maternity leave and then it's up to the employer to decide before then.

@Emsie1987

I think smp should be raised to more a liveable standard and increased to 12 months. Potentially employers footing more of the bill. Would be great to get full pay but I think it would employers employing women unless it was capped at a certain amount.

Would be a nice option to have up to 24 months off like other counties so working parents can benefit from the 30 hours free childcare. Or potentially for the first year a period of time off that allows for children to be sick and it's paid time off. So many viruses in the first year a few European counties do this even up to the age of 18. But not sure if this instead of parental leave.

I think parents who have twins should get more time off and babies they are born a lot earlier. Women who miscarry or have a medical abortion should get paid time off from 12 weeks. 24 weeks is the current time off to get maternity leave and then it's up to the employer to decide before then.

Really good point about the babies born early. Also for fathers, having to choose between being in hospital with their babies or being there when they first come home.

I think I’d rather the free hours be offered to working families earlier rather than an extension of leave past 12 months.

I love the idea of leave for sick children in the first year of childcare.

Six month full pay, three months half, three months statutory. Four weeks' paid paternity leave.

12 months full pay to be split between the parents, on the proviso that if the parents are living together 3 months is reserved for the father on a use it or lose it basis.

Proper paternity leave can be so beneficial for fathers and children, and I think it is good for the parents' relationship for the father to understand just how hard work it is to look after a baby all day. It also means he gets used to full-time parenting and there's less chance of the family reverting to a dynamic where the mother is the default parent. Obviously this isn't necessarily feasible if the father isn't in the picture or the parents don't live together.

I also think the cost of childcare should be means tested (capped at a maximum but with lower income families paying less, so that mothers don't feel financially unable to go back to work).

Great post @babyjellyfish

• substitute father for non birthing parent in the case of same sex couples

In an ideal world, I'd like 12 months paid for both parents, with at least six months of that to be taken one at a time, to encourage a culture of men having sole charge of their small children to realise how hard it is.

Personally, nine months was perfect - six months of zombification, three months of feeling more human and looking forward to using my brain again.

Cross post with @babyjellyfish who put it much better than me.

Ideally, maternity and paternity leave abolished and replaced with parental leave. 12 months full pay, for mothers and fathers.

"12 months full pay to be split between the parents, on the proviso that if the parents are living together 3 months is reserved for the father on a use it or lose it basis."

Ooh I like this option!

@itssquidstella

Six month full pay, three months half, three months statutory. Four weeks' paid paternity leave.

I agree with this but possibly 8 weeks for paternity leave. My DH took a weeks holiday off after his paternity leave and it just didn't feel long enough!

In the case of premature babies, the SMP entitlement should begin from the baby's due date, not birth date.

Also, SMP should be higher for everyone.

I think 6-8 months full pay would be awesome plus another 2-3 solely for dads/partners on a use it or lose it basis. My dh is getting paternity leave for the first time with this next baby and it will be great. Dads/partners would have to live with the Mum though, I wouldn’t want a system that encourages taking a baby full time away from their mum so men can get paid leave.

12 months full pay for the mother. 4-6 weeks full paternity pay.

@CoalCraft

In the case of premature babies, the SMP entitlement should begin from the baby's due date, not birth date.

Also, SMP should be higher for everyone.

I like this. But it would be even better if time spent with a premature baby in the NICU didn't count at all and was considered exceptional leave.

Whatever the mat leave policy, it should start equally from the moment the employee becomes an employee. Too many women are stuck in dead end jobs with no advancement prospects because they’re worried about losing out on maternity packages.

It means that men have much more flexibility to move up the ladder and adds to the gender pay gap. Would give women so much more opportunity to not have that restriction in place.

I would like a use it or lose it paternity pay option for once the mother's maternity leave finishes. It's no wonder so many mothers complain that their partner doesn't understand what they do all day, or finds looking after their own child difficult, when they've never had to do it alone for a decent period of time.

I know you can do shared parental leave, which is great, but in practice a lot of women refuse to give up any of their maternity leave so their partner can take over - I think it's quite selfish, but I do understand that the mother has grown and birthed that baby, and battled through the early months. The last few months can seem like a reward.

We did SPP, I went back after 9 months and DH did 3 months. It made going back a lot easier for me, as I knew DS was with his daddy and not childcare, but I did feel like I missed out (especially as it was a full 3 months of warm sunny weather in 2018 that I missed because I spent every lunch and break pumping in a small room!).

Well yes 12months full pay would be great but isn't workable for most companies. I'd like full pay for 6 months and then smp for 6 months. As it stands I have had full pay for three months and am on smp till April. I would have had to go back to work then had I not had savings and the fact that my dh can cover the bills I pay for so that I can be off until our lo is a year old.

I had the perfect maternity leave with my first.
One years full pay and I got made redundant at the end (knew I was going to be and hoping it would happen) so got a lump sum too!

I was only supposed to get 6 months full pay but they continued to pay me when I contacted hr they said leave it it'll be deducted from your redundancy. Hr didn't care as they were being made redundant too and payroll was in another country.

DH had 3 weeks off full pay (1 week was holidays)