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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To think going back to work is a waste of time

70 replies

flossielimejuice · 02/06/2010 21:07

I have had 2 babies v close together and I am now due to return to work after mat leave.

The child care cost for 2 children 3 days of week full time are £998 a month

My earning after tax etc will be £1211 a month.

It just seems so pointless particularly when you consider petrol will be £200 ish a month.

dh thinks I should go back as I quite like the job and dd will soon be 3 so get the nursery vouchers that will bring down the costs to about £918.

The baby is currently 11 months and the toddler age 2 years 8 months.

And also as I work in the public sector if I was to leave it might not be that easy to get another job in a couple of years time when the kids are at school.

Iam 90% for going back to work - thinking of the long term but it does seem a bit futile.

Also should point out that I realise that there are cheaper child care options but we have researched these and they just dont meet our needs. I need to set off for work v early and also we don't want to move dd from the nursery she is already used to.

OP posts:

PlanetEarth · 02/06/2010 21:12

Can you and/or your OH get childcare vouchers (not nursery vouchers, but the tax-break vouchers) through work? That brings the cost down a bit.

violethill · 02/06/2010 21:14

Look at the long term. If its a good job with prospects, pension etc then you'd be daft to jack it in just because you're only breaking even in the short term.

Many people are in your position, and are glad they hung on in there.

If its just a dead end job then you may not feel the same though

Portofino · 02/06/2010 21:15

It's not just about cash now though. Your pension and career will be moving along nicely. It would be much harder to get to the point where you are now if you just packed in for a few years.

nigglewiggle · 02/06/2010 21:19

But you also need to look at the positives of spending lots of time with your children and not having the pressure of rushing off to work/ nursery each morning.

Are you sure you don't have a career break option if you are in the public sector?

Wonderstuff · 02/06/2010 21:19

I think it isn't always about the money - I would definitly go back to work in your circumstances - because I would go insane at home full time. Also remember your pension, as planetearth says childcare vouchers may really help and long term, when they get to school age and your childcare costs drop will you not be in a much better position?

Original poster

flossielimejuice · 02/06/2010 21:24

We get the chidcare tax vouchers - the £1211 is before the max £243 is taken out.

In terms of pension - I am staring to think waht is the point - as all we hear in the papers is that ''gold plated'' public sector pensions are to be axed. Can't see the point being good and committing paying into it - when all the benefits might be cut.

OP posts:

whatnxt · 02/06/2010 21:41

Yes, you end up working for nothing for a few years, but will be soooo much better off once you don't need full-time childcare.

I was fortuate and managed to "keep my hand in" working part-time, but have now more or less picked-up where I left off.

Friends who were SAHMs are finding it difficult to find minimum wages jobs after being out of the workplace for 8 years or so.

Re pension - they'd ahve to be cut an awful lot before you'd be better of not having one, or having a private one for that matter.

redskyatnight · 02/06/2010 21:47

Those are almost exactly the ages my DC were when I went back to work.

We had a very first tough year after I went back ... the daily grind was very hard with 2 young DC plus I tried to make the most of the time I did have with them. I was pretty much working for no money as well.

As PPs have said, after the 1st year, life does get easier. I'm now in the position where my youngest is about to start school. I am VERY glad that I didn't become a SAHM (which I seriously thought about). I have so many more options in terms of increasing my hours (or not), moving to other jobs in the company etc. The financial thing was only really bad for a year, then nursery fees reduced for a 3 year old, then I got nursery funding, then my youngest's fees reduced as she was 2 ...

Definitely worth doing, but prepare yourself for a hard year to come.

Ceebee74 · 02/06/2010 21:52

Agree with the other posters.

I went back to work (last September) just as DS1 qualified for the nursery vouchers but it has still been a tough year with the 2 of them in nursery 4 days a week.

However, I can now see the light at the end of the tunnel with DS1 starting school in September so we will save approx £80 a week there, then 12 months after that, DS2 will qualify for the nursery vouchers (if the new govt haven't scrapped them by then ) so that will be another £50-£60 a week....and so on.

Personally I would grit your teeth, take the hit for the next few months and time will pass so quickly once you get into the daily grind, things will start to get cheaper before you know it

mizu · 02/06/2010 21:57

Agree you should go back to work. I went back when mine were both at nursery, close in age as well,and it was hardly worth me going back too.

But I did go back part time cos i love my job and it would have been hard to get back into. Now my youngest is going to school in September and i will be paying two lots of after school clubs 2 or 3 days a week but nothing like what i was paying a couple of years ago. Stick with it, it will be worth staying on.

nigglewiggle · 02/06/2010 22:16

I realise I am the lone voice suggesting you take some time away from work. But, if it is likely to be tough for the next 12 months or so, they why not take that time to spend with your children. Then go back part-time when finances and routines are easier. That way you are not out of the loop for too long.

Jamieandhismagictorch · 02/06/2010 22:21

I agree with nigglewiggle.

EmilyStrange · 02/06/2010 22:25

You are the lone voice no longer niggle. OP is it at all possible to take a break as niggle suggested. As I agree with Niggle I wont bother repeating what she has already said. Also in a couple of years we may be heading out of the current crisis so prospects may look up for all. If you can freeze your pension for a couple of years it may make little difference in the long term if that makes sense.

Original poster

flossielimejuice · 02/06/2010 22:26

I would like to that nigglewiggle but my BIG concern is that I would not get my job back or anything like my job. The public sector is contracting and I am at the top of the pay scale.

OP posts:

scottishmummy · 02/06/2010 22:29

go back,take financial hit now to maintain skills and competencies,and longer term it gets easy.breaks/gaps make it harder to get back into employment at same level

it can be done

iwastooearlytobeayummymummy · 02/06/2010 22:35

If you decide to SAHM try to ensure you keep
skills up to date by taking on some sort of voluntary work, or re training.

For example, could you volunteer to be treasurer, fund raiser or trustee for a local charity(? contact your local volunteer bureau to see what's needed in your area.)

Alternatively you may be able to find paid evening work as a clerk to a school's board of governors or work in retail or care.

The simple truth is that returning to work has costs and benefits on both sides, as others have already posted, such as pension contributions and free training.

Only you and your DH can decide if spending time at home with your young family is a cost you can afford in the longer term.

It is hard to return to the workplace,after a break, but not impossible.However I found that when I eventually returned my income was lower than when I had left, and I moved into a completely new sector, as there were no opportunities in my original field.

On balance I feel my time at home was time well spent, but am all too aware that the majority of mothers do not have much of a choice.

Whatever you choose, make it work for you.

good luck

whatnxt · 02/06/2010 22:35

That would be my concern flossie. I have a great job now, after 8 years of p-t working without progression. I applied for and got a promotion, which would just not have been available to me if I wasn't already working for the company.

Apart from new graduates, almost all jobs go to insiders in my industry.

iwastooearlytobeayummymummy · 02/06/2010 22:39

meant to add , I returned when I no longer had child care costs, so probably financially better off, but at the same salary level iyswim

dixiechick1975 · 02/06/2010 22:40

You can use 2 lots of childcare vouchers a month so £486 tax free if DH can also get them in his work.

pointydog · 02/06/2010 22:42

I think it's worth it if you want to go back, yes.

It won't be long till the costs go down and as long as you're not out of pocket, why not.

maktaitai · 02/06/2010 22:45

Any chance your dh can drop a day at his work and cut nursery time by 1/3?

nigglewiggle · 02/06/2010 22:47

Then, based on your assessment, it IS worth going back to work. It just might not make a great deal of difference financially, but it clearly matters in terms of your career prospects.

scottishmummy · 02/06/2010 22:51

time out is really hard to make up to recoup and entry back will be difficult. you could both get accor vouchers via work

it is a hard struggle but worth it to maintain senior /specialist position

esp if returning will be hard.most jobs now look for recent exp, good cpd and evidence of up to date contemporary research/issues/ebp

hang on in there is worth it

BelleDameSansMerci · 02/06/2010 22:55

Do you want to go back?

booyhoo · 02/06/2010 23:01

you sound as if you would rather not go back.

i started back to work in feb after mat leave and we were paying out £70 more a month in childcare than my salary was bringing in. tax credits enabled us to break even. i went back for myself rather than teh money. i needed to feel that i was contributing and not dependant on OH. but i have since left my job, not at all due to finances but the actual job itself.

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