Short mat leave - how early to take it?

[TTCSoManyQuestions88]

Finally pregnant after a year of TTC. YAY! However I only get 22 weeks of mat leave (not living in the UK, this includes my max allowance of holiday I can tag on). The job is very stressful and very long hours, and a very unsympathetic employer. Should I try and work until the very last minute? One of my colleagues has done this and the last few weeks were absolute hell. I don't know a lot of women with kids where we live, we're from the UK and my sisters both had almost a year of mat leave!

Should I plan to go 2 weeks earlier than my due date? Unfortunately I have to inform HR at 16 weeks which is less than ideal. Or would you suck it up for more time with baby?

Take at least a week for yourself before the baby arrives!

In my country 12 weeks is typical. Most women work up until the day they have the baby.

i would be looking for a new job

if it’s horrible and stressful now

Try balancing with a baby

The job is very stressful and very long hours, and a very unsympathetic employer.

what is your plan for when you return to this awful job but also now have a baby?

USA?

My first child arrived nine days after their due date, and i had gone off work about 2 weeks before (but used annual leave to have the week before that off too). That job had a big commute, and it was physically taxing. I have just had my second child who arrived five days after the due date. I took the week before the due date off and that worked perfectly. It is a toss up between comfort at the end of pregnancy and getting the most time with your child. I'm in the UK and found that at 6 months i didn't feel ready to go back to work, but by around 10 months i felt ready - so personally i would work later to try and get more time with the child, but it may be different if you feel your work impacts you too much physically or emotionally.

I'd work up til the last second. I went on mat leave 2 weeks before with my first, but I was due in work the morn I went into labour with my second.

@plumberdrain Father is going part time (3 days a week in a 9-5 job) plus a part time nanny for the days he works. While I work long hours, I work from home 3 days a week and when I do go to the office, the commute is a 5 minute drive and I frequently come home for lunch as well anyway.

It's more the stress than the long hours that I am worried about for those last few weeks.

Oh Op - your job sounds bloody awful. All the best

what will happen on the 3 days when he’s at work?

apologies… nanny

Yes, the job is awful, but the mat leave and health insurance is excellent in comparison to other employers. We were planning to move back to the UK and I was about to hand in my notice when I realized my horrible heartburn could mean I'm pregnant haha!!

So I need to make this work for a little while. We'll stay until I do the minimum back at work (6 months + 3 months notice). I can't quit because I lose the health insurance.