AIBU to take another year off work?

[Animallover87]

I'm currently half way through mat leave with my first (and only) baby.

I've been offered the opportunity to take another (unpaid) year from my company. It won't in any way affect my job prospects afterwards and I would slot back into the same job.

My DH is happy for me to do this and can cover all the bills on his salary but there isn't much left to spare afterwards so we'd need to tighten our belts but it's definitely doable.

I would rather look after my baby myself for another year than send him to childcare (no family support)

Would you do it?

It really depends on the industry.

It absolutely wouldn't be the case in mine. Not at the same level, not with the same salary or the same flexibility.

No brainer- 100% do it x whether you like it or not, you’re a number at work. You’re replaceable at work but not at home. You’ll never regret the extra time you spend with your child. Check if husband can claim any tax back, use your allowance etc and remember how much child care costs are, cost of petrol, costs spent on car for work, clothes for work, gifts for kids (teachers spend a lot of their own money on kids and stuff for classroom), you probably not that much worse off. Only thing to be careful of is if your husband keeps his money separate and if you have no savings to fall back on. If you totally pool money together you should be fine x

Agreed you wouldn’t reach the “heady heights” but I and all my friends who took hefty lumps of time out (all in varied industries actually) have gone back to decent well paid work in their old fields. There’s a skills shortage and sensible calm older women who won’t take mat leave are snapped up. If you were good before you will be good again .

Yes, absolutely I’d do it. I wouldn’t hesitate.

Actually that’s not true one of my ex sahm friends is now a partner in her Ad agency.

So not back stronger then.

It's definitely possible to go back, I wasn't denying that but it almost always comes at a price. Only an individual can decide if it's personally worth it.

Of course take the year.

Who are all these people who think once you off a narrow corporate path then that's it. Doomsday. It's not at all. The most successful people I know are flexible. It's normal to reassess, change career path, become self-employed, etc, even as you become older. Six months is nothing with a baby OP. You have brought new life into this world - embrace it. The early years are a miracle.

God it’s worth it! Some of the best years of my life and now back doing something just as lucrative but more suited to me.

All my friends who followed this path feel the same. You can (pretty nearly) have it all. What I do find odd is posters get quite cross when I say this. It’s almost like they want women who have taken time out to be screwed career wise sobbing at home when that’s not usually the case.

Like I said, it is individual. I'd hate to be a SAHM and my career would suffer so it wouldn't be worth it to me but then I also had a shorter maternity leave than average, I was bored out of my mind.

I'm not cross at all. If some women are able to continue with their careers at the same level or better, that's great, it really is. I'm just not sure that is the case the majority of the time.

I would get clarification as to what it means for your enhanced maternity pay (presuming you got it) and try to get it under some kind of process e.g have they got a Career Break policy. This sets out more what you can expect to return to.

i think I would prefer permanent part time work over another year off and going back full time.

No brainer, yep!

Thanks all!

To answer a few questions, I'm a permanently employed maths teacher at the top of the pay scale. I don't wish to climb to any 'heady heights', my job will be my 48k salary regardless of whether or not I return to it this year. They cannot take my job off me (unless I did something REALLY bad) and even IF restructuring took place (which it won't for my role in a large secondary school) they would have to find me another position in the local authority. My job is incredibly secure. My husband also has the same job so it would be almost impossible for his circumstances to change.

I spoke further with one of the senior managers and she told me that the headteacher is afraid to lose me hence offering me what they think I want as they will manage to get a NQT for the year. They are crying out for maths teachers with my experience in my area.

Enjoy your baby for as long as you can and stay home. I never regreted it and I had three.

100 % do it if you can cope financially. I stayed home until my son started school, financially it was tough at times but we coped and I wouldn’t have missed out on that time with my son for anything. It won’t make a massive difference to your pension that much and it’s a long way off that you will be taking that, you can top it up with savings when child is older. It’s time you won’t get back and it sounds like you would regret it

Does your employer know that you plan to come back part time? Or are they assuming that if you got another year off, you'd come back full?

I was a stay at home mum for 11 years. Take as long as you can! It doesn’t matter if you have to tighten your belts - you never get that time back. I know I was so lucky to have the time with my children, go to all the baby groups I could, go on school trips, be a school governor, help with reading in school etc. I did this until my husband changed jobs and since then have worked part time, sharing the earning responsibilities. I appreciate some people don’t have the luxury of doing this, but if you can, you’ll never regret it.

I’m assuming that all the T’s and I’s are all crossed and dotted. YES!!!

Long as u happy with no independence and being completely reliant on asking/begging ur husband for every single penny for that length of time go for it

Yes I would 100%!!! (I took 3 years off and returned and my career is better than ever).

100%. If you enjoy being a SAHM (for a while) this is a brilliant opportunity. One year on your pension won't make much difference in the long run but the joy and memories of a year with toddler DC will stay with you forever. Lucky you!

Absolutely. Your baby is only little once and you never get it back. I’m fortunate that I could give up work when I had my twins and won’t be going back until they’re settled in school.

Maths teacher! Wouldn’t worry then. Another sahm friend retrained as a maths teacher (she was a banker) the process was so quick and was funded a good maths teachers will be snapped up. A family member was out of teaching for 6 years - not maths but another secondary subject - again snapped up the minute she wanted to go back.

1 year won't make that much difference to pension OP. You could go back after your extended mat leave and your DC will get the subsidised government hours, nice one. You'll never get the time back with your DC again. I was a teacher but I took 18 months out with my first 2 DC. I've never regretted it. I did a lot with my DC whilst we were at home. I taught them their phonics and because they had such a good start they could both read well by 4 years old. I did lots of early Maths and nature with them both too. I did lots of playing with them and baking and art too. I loved and cherished the time I spent with each of my DC when they were very young. If you think this might be your only DC I'd definitely do it. You've got years ahead of you for working and pensions.

Depends on how much scrimping you’d have to do….

do you really want to go without holidays, new clothes, new makeup, hair appointments, hobbies etc??

it’s easy to say that will be fine but the reality is different…

I'm a secondary teacher and work 3 days a week since returning from my first maternity leave. I'd say yes, but only as well as, not instead of, returning part-time. I'd rather have the option to work 3 days a week permanently than have an extra year after maternity.

For my second maternity leave, I took a full year, then used 4 weeks unpaid parental leave tagged onto the end, which then took me into the summer holidays, so ended up with a bit more than a year. If there had been the option to take a whole extra year before I returned part time (and it was guaranteed I could return to the same role) then I would have taken it.