How Does Maternity Leave Work? We Have the Details on Pay and More

If you’re getting ready for a new child to arrive, or are planning to have one soon, chances are that the costs involved have been on your mind. No matter how exciting it is to become a mom, concern about missing paychecks can hamper joy. Maternity leave can help you bond with your new child and recover after childbirth, but how long is maternity leave and is maternity leave paid? We have the details.

What Is Maternity Leave?

Maternity leave is when a mother takes paid or unpaid time off work to care for a new child. It usually covers both caring for a new baby and recovering after pregnancy, as well as caring for a foster child, adoptive child, or a child born through surrogacy.

Maternity leave can be a separate policy or be bundled together with:

• parental leave, which is when any of the parents takes time off
• family leave, which is when you take time off to care for a family member
• medical leave, which is when you take time off for a qualifying medical reason, such as pregnancy or childbirth

Because U.S. doesn’t require paid maternity leave, employees who are expecting a child must navigate different options such as unpaid time off, employee benefits, state plans, and short-term disability for maternity leave. This makes U.S. maternity leave unique because U.S. is the only wealthy country (as classified by the World Bank) and one of the few in the world without mandated paid parental leave.

About 40% of moms still take some form of parental leave to care for and bond with their child, recover from childbirth, and adjust to new routines and a different sleeping schedule.

Paternity Leave vs Maternity Leave

Paternity leave is paid or unpaid time off for dads to care for a new child. Like maternity leave, paternity leave can be a plan of its own, or be part of parental leave or family leave. When paternity and maternity leave aren’t bundled together, paternity leave is usually significantly shorter.

Some plans differentiate between paternity leave vs maternity leave, but it’s more common that they differentiate between birth parents and non-birth parents. In this case, a non-birth parent is defined either as a parent having a child through surrogacy, foster care, or adoption, and/or as the parent not giving birth.

While a birth mother can sometimes start her leave during pregnancy, paternity leave begins after a child arrives.

How Can You Get Parental Leave?

Not everyone qualifies for parental leave. Depending on factors such as your work history and employer, you may not be able to use any leave, or you might qualify for one or several of the options below.

FMLA Maternity Leave

At the federal level, the only option you have is to take leave through the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which is unpaid (federal workers can get paid through the Federal Employee Paid Leave Act). FMLA maternity leave gives you time off to bond with a new child and protects your job so you can return to it. You have to meet certain conditions to qualify, including:

• having worked for your employer for at least 12 months
• having worked at least 1250 hours over the past year
• working at a company employing at least 50 workers within 75 miles or a public agency, elementary, or secondary school

FMLA maternity leave has the advantage of protecting your job, but the downside is that your employer isn’t required to pay you during this time. By now, you’re likely wondering how to get paid while on maternity leave. Below are some potential options.

How to Get Paid While on Maternity Leave: Employee Benefits

The best option for how to get paid while on maternity leave is usually through your employer as part of a benefits package, if your company offers this. While some companies only offer unpaid leave, most maternity leave policies include paid leave. About 35% of companies offer paid maternity leave, while about 27% offer paid paternity leave, according to a study.

Short-Term Disability for Maternity Leave

Short-term disability is an insurance plan you can sign up for privately, or through work if it’s part of your benefits package. Does short-term disability cover maternity leave? You have to sign up before you get pregnant to get short term-disability for maternity leave, since the plans usually exclude coverage for pre-existing conditions.

Because short-term disability is a health benefit, you can only use it for maternity leave if you’re the birth mother so that you can recover from childbirth. Some plans only cover pregnancy and childbirth if there are complications beyond typical circumstances.

State Plans

Some states offer paid parental leave to their residents. The rules and conditions for these plans will vary from state to state. In some states, the leave is bundled together with family leave or parental leave; other states offer leave specifically for birth mothers.

Paid Time Off

Many companies let you use your sick days, vacation time, and other paid time off towards parental leave. Some require that you use them first.

Other Options

Keep in mind that while employers who don’t meet FMLA conditions don’t have to honor it, they can still choose to do so. If you don’t qualify for any of the options above, consider asking your employer if they can still grant you a few weeks of paid or unpaid time off. You might also be able to negotiate a new work-from-home schedule for the first few weeks, temporary part-time hours, or other options.

If you’re unable to work due to medical complications beyond typical childbirth, you might also qualify for disability benefits from your state, if you don’t have private or employee-sponsored disability insurance.

Can You Get Temporary Unemployment for Maternity Leave?

You can’t apply for unemployment if you’re taking a leave from work and are planning to return.

In most cases, you can’t apply for unemployment if you quit your job to care for your new child. Voluntarily leaving a job usually disqualifies you for unemployment benefits. Being unable to work due to medical reasons also disqualifies you for unemployment.

However, a few states make exceptions for new parents in specific circumstances, such as if you don’t have another caregiver for your child, or if you’re unable to work due to labor and delivery complications or postpartum medical disorders.

If your employer chooses to terminate your job while you’re on parental leave, you could qualify for unemployment benefits.

How Does Maternity Leave Work?

Your maternity leave policy will be regulated under the laws and terms of the program you use, for example FMLA, disability insurance, or an employee benefit plan.

You can usually find detailed information about employee benefits through the HR department, employee handbook, or employment contract. You may need to refer to your insurance company, the FMLA act, and state employment office for information on other options. These are some common parental leave terms:

• You’ll let your supervisor and the HR department know at least a few weeks in advance when you’ll be starting your leave, and how long you’ll be on leave.
• If you get parental leave through employee benefits, you might also continue to earn these benefits while on leave.
• You may need a doctor note to start your leave before the birth, depending on what type of leave you’ll use.
• FMLA can run concurrently with other types of parental leave. You can take it while using paid leave through your employer to legally protect your job until you return. Many employers require that you take it while taking another type of parental leave instead of staggering the leave to stay home longer.

How to Apply for Parental Leave

Besides informing your supervisor and the HR department, if any, you’ll need to submit an application for parental leave in most cases. This is how it works:

• To apply for FMLA leave, consult your employer. The process to file may differ from employer to employer. An employer cannot deny you FMLA leave if you qualify, or pressure you not to take it, but they can request a medical certification form.
• To apply through your disability insurance, contact your insurance company to file a claim. Discuss filing a claim with your doctor first so they can get started on the paperwork.
• To apply through employee benefits, consult your employer.
• To apply through a state plan, contact your state employment office.

How Long Is Maternity Leave?

The length of time you can be away from work varies greatly depending on what type of leave you qualify for. These are some examples:

• FMLA leave: Federal law entitles you to 12 weeks of unpaid leave.
• Short-term disability: The average maternity leave using disability insurance plans is six weeks. You may be entitled to more time if you’re experiencing complications from childbirth.
• Employee benefits plans: The average maternity leave offered through employers is 41 days, according to the Society for Human Resources Management. Some large companies with generous benefits packages offer significantly more.
• State plans: Most states that offer paid parental leave cap it at 12 weeks.

What Happens If I Get Fired Before Maternity Leave?

In most circumstances, an employer can’t fire you or lay you off for taking, or planning to take, parental leave. If you think that you got fired as retaliation for planning to go on parental leave, consider consulting an attorney.

However, although an employer can’t typically fire you because you’re on, or will take parental leave, an employer can terminate your job for other reasons, such as:

• A mass layoff takes place, and people in similar positions as you are being laid off (that is, you’re not being unreasonably included in a layoff that targets other departments or levels of seniority, for example).
• Your department suffers a lack of funding, for example, there is a significant loss in revenue from the products, or clients don’t renew contracts.
• Your employer finds out about misconduct or performance issues that makes you unsuitable for the job that they weren’t aware of before.

Other Maternity Laws

Besides FMLA, there are several other laws applicable to pregnancy and maternity. They include:

• State laws: Besides paid leave benefits, some states have separate laws regulating parental leave. For example, the California Family Rights Act offers 12 weeks of unpaid or paid leave but protects your job until you return, while the California Paid Family Leave doesn’t give you job protection.
• The Pregnancy Discrimination Act: This is an amendment to the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that prohibits job discrimination due to current, past, or potential pregnancy, medical conditions related to childbirth, breastfeeding, and more.
• The American with Disabilities Act: This law prohibits discrimination against a job applicant based on a disability related to pregnancy.
• The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act: This requires employers to make reasonable accommodations to pregnant workers and workers who recently gave birth to a child.

When Does Maternity Leave Start?

If you’re not giving birth, you usually have some flexibility when to start your leave. If you’re the birth mother, you’ll typically start your leave when the baby arrives or a few weeks before then.

However, in some cases your doctor will declare that you’re unable to work far earlier than that, for example if you’re experiencing severe pregnancy complications or if your job is unsafe during pregnancy.

If you have a choice when to start your leave, it’s a good idea to start at least a couple of weeks before your due date. These are some reasons to take early maternity leave:

• In case your health or wellbeing worsen

Since the last month of the pregnancy can cause more problems with back pain, insomnia, fatigue, and more, it’s a good idea to request early leave even if you feel great at the time you’re putting in the request, since you need to determine the date ahead of time. (You can change to an earlier start time later if the doctor says you need to stop working.)

• To wrap things up at work

Starting your leave early will allow you to wrap things up in peace at work without unexpected complications, more frequent doctor visits, false labor, and other surprises. You’ll have time to set up your out-of-office message, give instructions to colleagues, clean up your desk, and discuss how you’ll handle returning to the office.

• In case your baby arrives early

One of the best reasons to take early maternity leave is that babies rarely arrive on schedule. Only about 5% of babies are born on their due date. A due date just predicts that your baby will be born within two weeks before or after that date, so it’s wise to start your leave at least two weeks before your due date.

The Companies With the Best Maternity Leave

There is a wide range in the amount of parental leave different companies offer. Below you can find information on some of the companies with the best maternity leave benefits. Keep in mind that you’ll have to meet certain conditions to qualify, for example having been a full-time employee for a certain amount of time.

The weeks listed are the maximum amount of paid parental leave you can get. At some companies all employees are entitled to the same amount of parental leave, as long as they meet the initial qualifications. At other companies you’ll accumulate parental leave in weeks, based on how long you work for the company.

Microsoft

What they do: Microsoft makes computer software and operating systems.

Number of employees: 221,000

What they offer: Microsoft offers 20 weeks of paid leave for mothers, and 12 weeks for other new parents.

Find jobs at Microsoft on Monster.

Amazon

What they do: Amazon is a technology company most known for its e-commerce and digital streaming services.

Number of employees: 1,541,000

What they offer: Amazon offers 20 weeks of paid leave for birth parents, and six weeks for other new parents.

Find jobs at Amazon on Monster.

American Express

What they do: American Express is a financial company offering payment cards and other services.

Number of employees: 77,300

What they offer: American Express offers 26-28 weeks for birth mothers, and 20 weeks for other parents. It also has a parent concierge on staff helping employees navigating parental leave.

Find jobs at American Express on Monster.

Capital One

What they do: Capital One is a finance company offering credit cards, loans, savings accounts, and other financial services.

Number or employees: 50,800

What they offer: Capital One offers 18 weeks of paid parental leave for birth mothers, and 12 weeks of paid leave for other parents.

Find Capital One jobs on Monster.

Adobe

What they do: Adobe is a computer software company best known for its products Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Acrobat Reader, and Adobe Creative Cloud.

Number of employees: 25,988

What they offer: Adobe offers up to 26 weeks of parental leave.

Find jobs at Adobe on Monster.

Johnson & Johnson

What they do: Johnson & Johnson is a manufacturer of medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and consumer goods.

Number of employees: 140,000
What they offer: Johnson and Johnson offers 18 weeks of paid maternity leave.

Find jobs at Johnson & Johnson on Monster.

Find Jobs With Better Maternity Leave Benefits on Monster

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