Advice re parental leave pls?

[busymum]

Hi, I would like to hear from anybody who has had experience of using the unpaid parental leave entitlement, I believe parents are allowed to take up to 13 weeks per year off work up to their child's 6th birthday (unpaid)? I would like to use some of this leave but am worried that my employer might not like it. I'm really interested to hear from other Mums/Dads, and if they experiences any problems with their employers.

Any advice at all really?

Many thanks

[felt-tip]

Hi there - I have recently agreed to take a couple of unpaid 'parental leave' weeks with my employer. They were absolutely fine about it - however there werent any clear 'processes' or anything on the employee intranet. I just asked my boss and then informed HR that I'm taking unpaid leave then. It was easy as pie.

[busymum]

Hi there, thanks for that. I think my employer would also be fine with that but I would quite like to take the whole lot, I'd also quite like to take it 2 days a week rather than 13 weeks all in one go? I'm not sure this is allowed? (although I'll do 13 weeks all in 1 go if necessary) plus I'd really like to take parental leave next year and the year after ...... Although I perhaps won't tell my employer that straight away! Has anyone got experience of spreading out the days in this way? I've no idea what my rights are? The Government suggest it is a parents entitlement but i'm not so sure ???

[njc97]

I took some time off like this last year - about 12 weeks in total but a mixture of holiday, parental leave and general "unpaid leave". I think they only need to give you 4 weeks a year - the 13 weeks is for the total in first 5 or 6 years.

My work was fine about it, but they are generally good about people taking unpaid leave anyway. What you are proposing sounds more like working part time for 6 months-ish - have you tried asking for that? Employers can't refuse you going part-time without a good reason (although there isn't much of a burden on an employer to prove a good reason).

[new mother]

I know some mothers whose offices were delighted to make the cost savings so you would be well advised to investigate. You have nothing to lose save the realisation by your employer that you want to spend more time with your ch, which will be apparent anyway in reality and is totally acceptable to most employers nowadays in any event.

[sunbob]

If you think there is any chance that you will be with the same employer for the whole 6 years then it may be an idea to save some of it, in case you really need it over the years.

[monniemae]

Busymum it's not 13 weeks per year!!! it's in total over the years, so sunbob is right about being careful in case you need it in the future

*amused at thought of all parents getting 13 weeks off a year*

from directgov:

How much parental leave can you take?

Each parent can take a total of up to 13 weeks' parental leave for each of your children up to their fifth birthday.

If your child is adopted, each parent can take a total of up to 13 weeks' parental leave. This can be until the fifth anniversary of their placement with you or until their 18th birthday, whichever comes first.

If your child is disabled (that is, receiving disability allowance) each parent has the right to take up to 18 weeks' parental leave until their 18th birthday.

* Caring for a disabled child (caring for someone section)

Parental leave is an individual right and you cannot transfer the leave between parents. For example a father cannot decide to take only ten weeks and the mother take 16 weeks.

[TP]

busymum Wrote:

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> I'd also quite like to

> take it 2 days a week rather than 13 weeks all in

> one go? I'm not sure this is allowed? (although

> I'll do 13 weeks all in 1 go if necessary) plus

> I'd really like to take parental leave next year

> and the year after ......

It's your legal entitlement, so I'd take it if you can afford it! most employers will want a solid reason e.g. setting into new school/ new area. I was granted one month for relocating but never actually took it due to house sale falling through. The company I work for - which usually follows this kind of legislation to the letter - caps the leave at 4 weeks per year, plus you can only take a certain amount within 12 months (ie you can't take Dec & Jan) and does not allow you to split the weeks into smaller units, so if I took 2 days it would count as 1 week's PL. They also ask for at least 21 days notice and do have the legal right to postpone it if they feel it would be highly disruptive, but not to cancel it.

Talk to your HR department... more info here

monniemae: :) wouldn't it be fab though!!!

[Fuschia]

Why not enquire about flexible working, working term time only, that sort of thing?

[busymum]

Hi everyone and thanks for all your advice, and sorry if I got anyone's hopes up that it was 13 weeks per year!

There is a lot going on at my work at the moment and I'm just trying to get a plan A,B and C worked out in my head. Njc97 your employer sounds great, my (new) boss made it perfectly clear when I was trying to negotiate part-time hours towards the end of maternity leave that it was a full -time position (despite the fact that I previously did exactly the same role as a job-share after my 1st child. I had a different boss - long story) Anyway I managed to beat my new boss down a bit, 4.5 days.

I guess there is nothing stopping me asking for a different job, one I can do part-time, but I recon they will try and pay me less. I just didn't have the energy for all these negotiations whilst on maternity leave plus I work in the public sector and I was already aware that there were strong possibilities of redundancies, so I took a calculated risk and went back to my old job.

As it turns out there are not likely to be redundancies now until next year, probably not before April, which is why I would have liked 2 days a week parental leave in Jan/Feb/March, whilst securing my job and contractual hours and redundancy pay, if it comes to that.

New Mother thanks for your advice, you're right there is nothing wrong with letting my employer know that I just want to spend more time with my children although I'm paranoid they might use it against me somehow. In reality they should be trying to make the cost savings aswell.

TP do you think just wanting to spend more time with my kids whilst they are so young is a good enough reason for PL, or do I need to come with a more 'solid reason'? I might make one up!

Another option might be to ask for a sabbatical or career break in order to spend more time with the kids whilst they are both so young. Has anyone done that? Would I be putting myself at any risk, I have a vague recollection that's staff are not entitled to any redundancy pay if they are on sabbatical!!? Hope I just imagined this. Although parental leave sounds like the best option all round as you earn the same pension contributions, annual leave entitlement and other staff benefits I think?

What to do about voluntary redundancy is my next quandary, probably save that questions for another post. I'm not sure I'd even get it if I applied but I am desperate to hear positive stories from mums finding great part time positions after redundancy or using the money to start their own businesses. Or am I completely mad volunteering to be made redundant from a very well respected, reasonably family friendly organization, in the current economic climate?

Sorry totally going off on a tangent with this

Ps do you get 13 weeks (over 6 yrs) per child?

[sunbob]

TP do you think just wanting to spend more time with my kids whilst they are so young is a good enough reason for PL, or do I need to come with a more 'solid reason'? I might make one up!

You could try and come up with something that is a good reason from the organisation's point of view. Eg. retaining experienced staff, being seen to offer flexibility to people with a caring responsibility at home etc.

[TP]

sunbob Wrote:

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> TP do you think just wanting to spend more time

> with my kids whilst they are so young is a good

> enough reason for PL, or do I need to come with a

> more 'solid reason'? I might make one up!

>

> You could try and come up with something that is a

> good reason from the organisation's point of view.

> Eg. retaining experienced staff, being seen to

> offer flexibility to people with a caring

> responsibility at home etc.

On the directgov site it does say PL could be "spending more time with your child in their early years"; sunbob I think you are spot on - how you present it to them is important.

busymum it might help to have a think about the likely impact for your employer & how you can minimise/overcome any of their likely objections.

T

[busymum]

I just wanted to say thank you so much for all the advice.

I'm going to ask for 1 day a week initially but I'm not holding out much hope. I'm going to use the reason that i just want to spend more time with my children in the first instance and then use other arguements if necessary.

Even if I manage to get some unpaid leave, the problem will then be childcare, still paying for nursery, nanny, childminder etc. Would have to re-negotiate contracts with nanny or find something else, our nursery won't negotiate. No wonder no one ever uses their unpaid parental leave! They don't exactly make it easy for parents to spend more time with their children when they're young do they!