And not all states allow women to take short-term disability leave to cover pregnancy, birth, and postpartum recovery. Your employer may have policies that dictate the order in which you can take different kinds of leave.
In any case, you'll want to start looking into your options as early as you can during your pregnancy and make sure you have all your paperwork sorted out before the baby arrives. Short-term disability is meant to cover your salary — or a portion of it — during the time that you're unable to do your job due to illness, injury, or childbirth. Many large employers and unions offer it, as do several states. It's generally provided automatically to all employees or residents, not as an optional benefit you have to sign up for.
If your state provides STD, you may pay a small amount out of each paycheck to cover your share. If your employer or union provides it, the cost may be covered for you. If none of them provides STD, or if the coverage is insufficient, you can purchase your own policy or additional coverage through an insurance provider for a monthly premium.
Private STD insurance through your employer or a provider will generally pay between 50 and percent of your salary for a certain number of weeks, depending on how many years you've worked for the company. The maximum amount you can receive is usually capped. Six weeks is the standard amount of time covered for pregnancy. Some plans allow more time if you've had complications or a cesarean delivery, and many also cover bedrest before birth.
State STD benefits typically cover half to two-thirds of your salary, and the coverage for pregnancy usually lasts four to six weeks but can last up to 12 weeks. You may be able to get extended coverage after the birth if you've had a c-section or medical complications, but your doctor must certify this. If both your state and your company offer STD, you may be required to use the full state benefit and have your employer's coverage make up the rest.
You'll still end up with the same amount of pay as if you were getting your employer's full benefit, but you'll get it in two checks, one from the state and one from your company's provider. Many programs require that you be out of work for up to a week before you can start to collect disability benefits.
Your employer or your state's program may require you to use up your accrued sick days or vacation days before your disability benefits kick in.
That's not necessarily a bad thing, as those days are paid at your full salary. It depends on who's paying the insurance premiums for your coverage. The portion of your salary that you receive from your employer's coverage is taxable, but no income taxes will be taken out of your checks, so you'll end up owing the money in April.
On the other hand, you'll be able to take an extra deduction for having a new dependent, so that may offset the amount.
Money you receive from a state disability program is generally not subject to federal or state income taxes. If you pay for the disability insurance yourself, the benefits you receive are also tax-free.
Some new moms decide to return to work once their coverage runs out, which is typically after about six weeks. Of course, some have to return even sooner if they're relying on a state benefit that only pays half of their normal salary and they can't afford to make up the difference.
If you've accrued vacation, personal, or sick days, you may want to use them to extend your leave. Some companies will even allow you to take vacation or sick days that you haven't yet accrued. In some cases, however, you may be asked to reimburse the company for those days if you decide not to return to work after your leave. You may also be eligible for unpaid leave when your disability runs out.
If you choose not to return to work when your STD coverage ends, some states allow you to take a certain amount of time off as unpaid pregnancy leave. California has a particularly generous provision, allowing up to 12 weeks for new parents — not just women.
You won't get paid during this time, but your employer will be required to hold your job for you until you're able to return or until the leave runs out. Your employer may require that you use up your sick days before taking unpaid leave. Print Download. Print close X. Download close X. Email address. Select the statement you most agree with:. I do not understand the information.
I cannot find the information I'm looking for. I cannot work out what to do next. Tell us more about your answer Please do not include any personal details, for example email address or phone number. Leave this field blank. Thank you for your feedback If you like, you can tell us more about what was useful on this page. Linkedin Twitter Facebook. You must tell your employer when you want to start your maternity leave, by the 15th week before the baby is due that is when you are about 6 months pregnant.
Your employer is entitled to ask you: How you are feeling, as this may be necessary to consider health and safety or other adjustments, for example to the hours you work. When you are likely to start your maternity leave and how long you are likely to take; but you should not be forced to make a firm decision before you are ready. When you will take annual leave. When to hold a performance review if this is due during maternity leave. You can use the online calculator at the UK Government website to calculate your maternity pay.
If your employer dismisses you to avoid paying statutory maternity pay, this would be maternity discrimination, or pregnancy discrimination if you are dismissed whilst pregnant. Any bad treatment of you because you are pregnant, on maternity leave, or claiming statutory maternity pay would be unlawful discrimination. If you are dismissed after the qualifying week for statutory maternity pay the 15th week before your expected week of childbirth, you are entitled to statutory maternity pay.
Your employer must pay it for the full week period. You do not need to say how long you will be off on maternity leave but it will help your employer if you do. If you say nothing, your employer will assume that you will take a full year 52 weeks. If you want to return earlier than one year you must tell your employer 8 weeks before you want to return. On the other hand, you could be finding pregnancy a breeze!
Commuting to work can be stressful enough with busy and delayed trains or hours spent in traffic, but this is greatly intensified when you have a bump to think about too, not to mention exhausting. If you work in a particularly physically or emotionally draining job, you may find it hard to continue working until close to your due date, and prefer to take leave early. It can be really helpful to talk to other friends and family about their maternity leave experience, especially if they work in a similar profession to you.
You can change the date of your maternity leave but must give your employer 28 days notice. Maternity leave, pay and rights in the workplace can seem a bit confusing — but the law is on your side!
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