Topic-al Tuesday

Today's topic: paid maternity leave

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Notice above that our highly developed country (of which I am VERY grateful to live in for many reasons), is the ONLY country on the chart without a national paid maternity leave policy. This is not to say that some private companies don’t offer paid leave. We also have FMLA, which requires employers to provide 12 weeks of unpaid leave with job security (however-to qualify for FMLA, you have to have been an employee for a year or more). All in all, IMO, it's just an embarrassment to our country.

I’ll leave personal stories about my maternity leaves out, for the sake of all parties involved.

Most teachers, and yes, I am a teacher, do not get paid leave. Most women I know do not get paid leave. The ones that do are generally very lucky and work for a generous employer. You can go through an ungodly amount of red tape to get what’s called “disability” pay, which only kicks in after 2 weeks of unpaid leave. So if you’re allowed to take 6 weeks, you could technically get 60% of your pay for 4 full weeks. That’s if disability is even an option in your state/company/etc.

It can get sticky when throwing out ideas for universal paid maternity leave. Who gets it? How much? For how long? Will giving it to ALL women, despite job history, make the birth rate sky rocket? Will it make tax payers angry to know they are paying for maternity leave for women who weren’t working before the baby and paying into the fund itself? Will people have babies just to get money? (snickering over here..thinking about the people who think babies are a walk in the park, just to get a few extra bucks..I can think of a few things I’d do to make money before getting knocked up- something called WORKING?!?) Should it be for all working women? Ok, so how about giving it to working women who make under a certain amount per year? Like I said, sticky with a heap of honey. Good grief.

You know what I’d like? 50% of my salary for 6 months. Seems fair and square. Going back to work after 6 weeks (even 12 weeks) off is a laugh-out-loud joke. At 6 weeks, a new mom’s hormones are barely getting back to normal, possibly not even on the normal scale yet. Nursing is JUST getting easier. Sleep is STILL non-existent. And employers expect to get a full day’s quality work out of that mom? My guess is that the main thing on mom’s mind is BABY. Not to mention all the breaks to pump (if she wants to continue producing milk). Then there are the complications about what to do with tiny 6-week old baby. Talk about a headache. Poor mom. Poor employer. Poor baby. All around stinky situation.

6 months would be a semi-adequate time to bond with baby, catch up on sleep, let the hormone roller coaster come to a halt, and establish and succeed at breastfeeding. *Note- all doctors recommend breastfeeding for at least SIX months, so this makes so much sense! IF mom has to return to work, at least she got to do what the doctors say to do- nurse for 6 months- then she can return to work feeling good about herself and her baby’s health. But WAIT! What about the poor formula companies? My guess is they would be donating millions to whatever political candidate DOESN’T support a paid maternity leave! 

Australia has only had their national paid maternity leave policy for about a year. Maybe the US will be right behind them. I hope so. I’d like to see something. My ears start steaming when I think about tax payer money going towards prisoners in our country who receive free health care, internet access, weight rooms, etc; doesn’t it make sense for some of that money to go toward working women who can’t work due to having a baby? I don’t think we DESERVE it. We don’t deserve anything. And yes, I think a wise woman/couple should save up and have a plan, not rely on the government to “save” them.

The problem lies in reality. What if the wife is the sole breadwinner? What if both working parents make just enough to sustain their family? What if someone has just had a life emergency and their savings has been drained? There are a thousand and one possible scenarios in which a family could really use a paid maternity leave policy. As far as government programs go, I think this one would be an asset to the economy. Let women fully recover before going back to work. Let babies get a chance to get the most healthful option for milk. Let employers get the best work out of their employees. Seems like a win-win-win.

Here and here are some pretty decent articles about paid mat leave in the US. 

How’s that for a Tuesday morning topic, eh? What do you think?