To wonder if I need to put maternity leave on my CV?

[Sofiegiraffe]

Sorry not really an AIBU but I'm wondering how to present this on my CV.

Essentially, I started a job almost 2 years ago and have spent almost half of that time off on maternity leave. So when I am presenting my work history on my CV, I don't want to be be misleading and say I have 2 years experience working in this role as I don't really.

What is the usual etiquette for this? Should I explicitly mention maternity leave on my CV? Or would it be best to just explain any gaps in my skills / experience in interview if asked why I haven't progressed as far as they might have been expected in my role (not sure if they will ask this of course... just anticipating what might come up).

Sorry if this is a silly question. It's been a good few years since I needed to do a CV and I've never had any gaps in my work experience so I'm not sure how to frame it.

Thanks for any thoughts.

i wouldnt mention it at all- as long as you're employed by them during that time i don't think you'd need to say anything

No I wouldn’t. You have been in role 2 years. I know employers shouldn’t discriminate but you are flagging up you have a young nursery aged child likely to get sick (time off) plus flagging up you may have another maternity leave soon. Covid etc lots of reasons for less cpd. If asked in interview I’d answer honestly.

I think you might be misunderstanding the purpose of a CV, OP. It’s basically a sales document to outline your professional skills and experience; it isn’t a biographical account of your work history.

Having been on mat leave isn’t a selling point, so there’s no reason to mention it on your CV at all. If you’re invited to attend an interview, then presumably the recruiter was happy enough with what they saw of the skills and experience you’ve gained in your current role, so there should be no discussion to have about the experience you haven’t gained.

If the question is posed then obviously you can answer it. But otherwise, why would you?

Really though, the question not be posed at interview as its against the Equality Act to ask interview questions about protected characteristics. The employer can't ask you about pregnancy/maternity in the same way they can't ask if you're gay or whether you're disabled.

Absolutely do not mention it on your CV. You're asking for the wrong sort of employer to rule you out straight away.

If the question is posed at interview just say covid got in the way. The may well assume that anyway.

@JuergenSchwarzwald

If the question is posed at interview just say covid got in the way. The may well assume that anyway.

Never lie at interview. It has a nasty habit of biting you on the backside.

Definitely don’t mention it on your CV, it’s just not necessary.