Does my employer have to grant an extention to maternity leave??

[Mia78]

I sat down with my manager yesterday and told her that I am planning on starting my maternity leave at 35 weeks, and that I will be applying for 12 months leave..with the idea that its better to plan for the worst case scenario.
She asked me "a favour" and asked that I fill my maternity leave form in for 6 months instead of the 12 months, and then if I want to extend it, to do so once I am already on maternity leave.
The only reason I can see why she would have asked this is for internal admin political reasons (she told the CEO that I would be back in a littlever 3 months)..so I figure that this request is to save face for her.
So...I have no problem in doing it this way...except I want to make sure that my extention will be approved if/when I apply for it. I cant seem to find anything relating to this under the legal code...can anyone help??

[XavysMummy]

I personally would do it for fear that they might knock you back at the 6mth point

[MothersMilk]

My concern would be at 6 months they don't grant the extension. Since you would have only signed for 6 then i assume they would be able to deny a request for more.
If you want 12 months off i would apply for the 12 months so you are then guaranteed it
If the CEO is under some impression that you will be back sooner then it seems to me they are expecting you back and may not agree to an extension.
Sounds a bit dodgy to me.

[missie_mack]

In some states you are entitled to apply for one extention and it can only be knocked back with good reason (like extreme cost to company in the case of small business) but it really depends on which jurisdiction your award or contract comes under

Have a look at your award and see which act it references in it for maternity/parental leave....from personal experience it can be best not to p!ss the boss off

ETA A reason she might want you to only apply for 6 months is not wanting to advertise a secondment position... for 6 months depending on your position she might just try and save her budget with making do or getting a temp in on contract (as an idea)

[poppygirl]

Hey, just wondering if you know if you have a workplace agreement, and if so, what that says about this?

I was asked to shorten my mat leave request from 12 months to 6 months when i was applying for leave. The reason my employer gave me was that it would be difficult for them to employ someone to replace me for the period of my mat leave if they were not able to give them a definite period of employment (rather than just advertising the position as being for "up to 12 months" for example). I didn't feel okay about doing this, and ended up having to go to my union to seek support because my employer was refusing to accept my application for 12 months leave! My manager's manager had pressured me very early on in my pregnancy for an indication as to how much leave i planned on taking, and had then passed on the details of this conversation to her manager (eg told him i would be gone for 6 months). I had thought this was a casual discussion and had made it clear i wasn't really sure yet what i would be doing.

It was important for me to read my agreement really carefully, as at a glance, it seemed that it was my right to have up to 12 months leave, but in reality, it was my right to apply to have up to 12 months leave. It also stated i had the right to apply to extend maternity leave - the employer has the right not to accept or approve that application.

I ended up taking the 12 months leave (they approved it once the union got involved), but i resigned at the end of my leave due largely to the attitude that was taken by employer throughout this situation. I had worked with the agency for more than 3 years, and felt hurt and betrayed by their behaviour, which placed a lot of stress on myself and my partner in the last weeks of my pregnancy.

Since then i have noticed lots of ads which advertise they are seeking someone for "up to 12 months" to cover maternity leave..it's no biggie.

My advice would be to do what is right and comfortable for you and your family, and to be careful about taking the "i don't mind, i'll do it to help you out" sort of tack. I just think, work is work - she is your manager - if she has told the CEO you'll be back sooner than you want to be, then she needs to manage that. It's not your responsibility to do her a "favour" and in so doing potentially turn your maternity leave into a stressful time.

Sorry to so much - I just feel really passionate about women and their treatment in the workplace throughout pregnancy and maternity leave etc since my experience, which left me (obviously from the way i am raving on lol) feeling very sad and angry.

Good luck!!!! Find out what your rights are (maybe speak with your union if you are in one, they can interpret your rights for you) and when talking with your manager, stick to the facts - it's not personal, it's not about her, it's an application for leave.