worried to tell work i’m pregnant again

[maternityleaveworry]

i’m 17 weeks pregnant and still haven’t told work. i only went back after my previous maternity leave about a month ago and my boss was already funny about me coming back then (i think because i said i can no longer do weekdays as i can’t get childcare for the 2 little ones i have and can’t justify spending more on nursery than id make. its a zero hour minimum wage job)

anyway. i found out this week another staff member is pregnant (6/7 weeks behind me) and i imagine that’s why my boss agreed to give me shifts because she knows she’ll need maternity leave for her. obviously i will not be covering her maternity leave shifts as ill be on it before her. i just don’t know how to tell them now because im worried she’ll just think well i dont need you i’ll cut your hours etc? it’s one of those work environments where its totally unprofessional ‘we’re like a family’ vibes whilst actually being totally toxic and im just really anxious about them cutting my shifts dead or bitching about me

What's the work? I'm only asking as you may need a risk assessment and if you were a member of my team I'd want to ensure you and baby were kept as safe as possible. Although your boss sounds like an arse

so i was on maternity leave for 11 months, 1 month being unpaid. was november last year to this october basically. i qualified for smp at that point so i did get paid until i think september payday?

@supersonicginandtonic outing to say what it exactly is but it’s nothing strenuous. the only thing they ‘risk assessed’ me for the last one was that i couldn’t use a certain cleaning product as it’s a strong chemical but i can easily avoid that

Really?! On a zero hours contract?! She had no obligation to go back full stop and they had no obligation to take her back either.

@Weddingblues23 exactly it’s not as if i changed my contract, i was never obligated to work weekdays in the first place 😅

Aren't you a peach? 😑
I can clarify it's her legal right to not disclose at that stage.

@maternityleaveworry
Given its a zero hour contract I'd say your obligations are low to none to your employer so do what's right for you and let your boss have the hump if they want.

Two close pregnancies can be hard work.
My advice is look after yourself, disclose in writing end of week so your boss has time to digest and do this at 25 week mark with a request for risk assessment.
Take any time off that you need relating to the pregnancy and be sure to log that as maternity related illness not standard sick leave.

Gov.uk pages give clear advice on your legal rights it's worth a read.
Also recommend following pregnant then screwed on insta. They are a useful resource generally.

This is one of the reasons why it makes it hard for women of child-bearing age to get a job - it's essentially back-to-back maternity leave. I kind of understand why employers avoid employing women - it just seems a lot of hassle to be honest. Not saying it's right, but I can imagine that it is annoying for management.

It's a zero hours contract. They owe you nothing but it goes both ways. Don't say anything until you absolutely have to.

@Scalottia oh i totally get that. that’s why i stayed in this job despite it being zero hours and low pay because i graduated just last year and knew we’d have another in close succession - id rather start my career able to tell my employer i wont ever be needing maternity leave again because 3 is definitely enough, and annoy a min wage job who honestly treat us all unfairly anyway, than start my career and annoy an employer i actually want to climb the ladder with etc

Is your job in any way physical? If it is, I would tell them so they can conduct a risk assessment and you can work safely throughout the pregnancy.

Your right to mat leave etc won’t be affected due to continuous service, which is not impacted by prior maternity leave.

Of course she doesn't have to tell them that early it's not their business (unless she needs time off for appointments or for special arrangements to be made at work for them). They dont need 6 months notice for a mat leave especially for what sounds like a zero hours contract shift job

I am manager in a professional job and I expect my employer to fully support me through my mat leave and have complained when they haven't. Never be apologetic for having children if a company can't cope with an employee having time off then it's the company's fault not the employees!

@Unexpectedlysinglemum thanks so much - this is what my husband keeps saying like it’s not my fault they employ the bare minimum number of people and then complain about lack of cover if people are sick etc

forgot to add same boss asked my how long maternity id be taking with my last one and i said i wasn’t 100% sure and would have a think about it (this was well in advance btw like 8 weeks along probably) and she said she was hoping id take 6 weeks 😭 the more i type out about this job the more its annoying me

This. I guess it depends how desperate for staff they are as to whether they give you shifts if they are pissed off with you. You don't have to tell them yet though so I would string it out as long as you can.

You shouldn't have to be telling an employer that.

before you went on maternity last time, how long had you been working there?

Wait until 25 weeks and then tell them. Have a look here. congratulations