Partnerships and maternity leave

[Proon]

I am in a bit of a bind. I'm in the process of starting up a partnership with a business partner (we want to open a shop). We're thrashing out a partnership agreement at the moment.

The trouble is that while I have completed my family, she is getting married soon and is in her mid thirties. She's opened up about how much she wants to start a family and I think that is great but we cannot work out how she can do this and contribute 50:50 to the running of the partnership. Any solution either takes up more time than I can give it (I have a family) or takes profit out of the company (eg an employee). I'm not keen to 'be' the safety net that maternity pay would normally provide for an employee or to lose out financially. It's clearly different when the partners are a couple who are working together towards the same goals, ie a business AND a family.

Has anyone encountered this and do you have any creative solutions or advice to give?

Could you benefit in some other way ie having some time out also, at a different time?

Could there be an agreement that she pays for someone to fill in for her when she is off (for all or part of the time)?

What agreement are you going to have for sickness absence - that is more unpredictable, but could still leave one of you as the only one working?

Her paying for someone to fill in is a good option. ATM she is discussing it in terms of the money for an employee coming out of the business, but that would render the business unprofitable so what's the point in the first place? And I know she couldn't afford it herself at the moment.

Bumping in case anyone can help

If she is self employed and tax paying she may qualify for maternity allowance so that my help. I work in a large partnership and I think deal is partners get reduced income
Share (ie their usual salary type arrangement is cut) and minimal profit
Share . I would suggest that her Profit share is after Cost of matenity cover

If she cant afford it herself then maybe needs to think about balancing starting a business with starting a family when business can cover costs. Harsh but fact of
Life.

Thanks. Yes 'harsh but fact of life' is definitely what I am getting from any research I do into it
Shows it is WELL worth hammering this sort of thing out before signing anything or committing any money.

Completely- is she putting any significant cash In? If so can she take some interest on that as her share and then let you have profit. Is there any way she can help a bit and you can do with limited/cheaper help (eg someone on training type wage).

Interest on her share - hadn't thought of that, will talk it over.

Well, just for completeness, in case anybody searches and finds this thread:
this has really put the kybosh on our plans.

From my point of view, I don't want to work with a partner to start a very small business and to have to subsidise maternity leave plus do all the work associated with running the business.

I haven't had any encouragement from the prospective partner that she is willing to cover her own absence somehow, or to come up with any ideas about it at all. Very frustrating but a worthwhile exercise to talk it through and research, even if the result is not good. This has saved us a ton of stress later on.

Sorry to hear that proon

Ah well. Frustrating but a good lesson.