Case Study: Lawyer Headhunted On Maternity Leave

When a driven, ambitious lawyer announces that she is having a baby, her employer has some key decisions to make to ensure a smooth departure and return. In this case, one employer’s loss was another’s gain…  

Although happy to share her story, this lawyer wanted to remain anonymous so we’ll call her Julia. When Julia announced she was pregnant at her law firm, all was well. She was treated fairly, adjustments were made, and it was easy for her to attend all the necessary antenatal appointments during her working hours without any resentment or sideways glances.

The problems came during the handling of her workload. After years with the firm building up a client base on full time hours, Julia was surprised to learn that her employer intended for her line manager to take on all the extra work alone while she was away. This caused a great deal of stress for everyone involved and made the time leading up to her maternity leave very tense.

Shortly after...

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Returning From Maternity Leave: “It feels like I haven’t been away”

Anna is a Teaching Assistant at a Learning Centre in the UK who recently returned from maternity leave and agreed to share her experiences with us.

Upon returning to work, Anna’s employer was flexible to her request for fewer hours and later start times to accommodate nursery drop-offs. But more than that, she was reassured that she would not be penalised for occasionally running late due to her parental responsibilities and told not to worry about it.

It’s brilliant to hear that Anna’s work culture is sensitive to the needs of working parents and has allowed and supported her to continue on her career path as before. Within a few months of returning to work she completed a training course, and she says that it feels like she was never away.

The main challenge for Anna has been the cost of childcare and the realities of separation for extended periods, but over time she has become more comfortable in the knowledge that her son is safe and happy at nursery.

Her...

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Balancing professional and personal life before baby is born

Hopefully, as you read this, you are experiencing a healthy and happy pregnancy, having had the necessary conversations at work and organised yourself so that you are both energised and engaged professionally and personally.

Now fast forward to the time when you will be with your new baby, during your parental leave. This is a unique and special time which we want you to thrive in and not be worrying about “what’s next”. So, to help you maximise this period, it is worth planning ahead now. Let me share my own personal experience to demonstrate the importance of this.

I was working as a Project Manager at IBM, managing a remote team, when I fell pregnant with my first child, Olivia. It was a period when I worked on client sites, often away from home Monday to Thursday, working long hours and at times, under a lot of pressure! My team also worked on client sites, on similar change projects and I needed to be available to support them.

I realised that I would need to...

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So You’re Pregnant...What To Consider Before Telling Your Boss

Once you’ve decided when to share the news about your pregnancy with your boss, there are steps you can take to ensure it is well received.

Now is the time to start reflecting on how long a maternity break you would like to take and your initial ideas on the handover of your role.

Before you sit down with your manager, here are some things to consider that may help you have a more productive discussion...

Research your company’s leave policies

Learn everything you can about your employer’s maternity leave policies. Some offer paid leave, some offer unpaid leave, and others allow sick days or vacation days to be put towards family leave. Read your employee handbook and consider setting up a confidential meeting with someone in HR.

Know your employment rights

Familiarise yourself with your local employment laws so you know what you’re entitled to. Most countries have public websites hosting this information and a simple Google search will offer a wealth of...

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Congratulations, you're pregnant! When do you tell your boss?

One of the things professional women struggle with when they learn they are pregnant, is figuring out the best time and way to share the news with their boss and managing communications from then on.

If you only follow one piece of advice, please don’t fall into the trap of telling anyone else at work before your boss!

News travels fast and you need to remain in control.

Sharing the good news can be nerve wracking. With no-one at work to lean on for advice and support, it’s common to feel a tsunami of emotion and fear about how to approach the conversion.

Some typical fears and doubts include:

“Will I be treated differently?” “Will I be passed over for leadership opportunities or long term projects?”

Don’t Be Afraid To Tell Your Manager

The good news is that most managers are very supportive and will be thrilled for you. It may also help you relax to know that you don’t need to have everything (or anything) figured out before...

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8 Genius Ways to Set Up Your Maternity Leave for Success - even when you feel out of control

The lead up to maternity really does feel like a rollercoaster for many women: excited and energised one moment, sick or tired and fearful of the future the next, coupled with a changing body shape and swirling emotions.

It’s no surprise that it is a somewhat confusing period in our lives ….(imagine how it is for partners watching on!).

There are many factors that you will not be able to directly control; so focus on what you can control and influence; starting with a positive perspective and taking ownership. Here are a few pointers:

#1: Talk to others

If you haven’t already, understand the internal HR policies around maternity and talk to others you know, who have already been through this transition.

They may have some ideas and advice that may not be obvious to you – both what to do and what not to do!

#2: Challenge your assumptions

It is very personal as to when you advise your manager of your pregnancy and the relationship you have will...

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Top Ten Tips to Prepare for Motherhood

Hindsight is a wonderful gift and a particularly helpful one if you are pregnant for the 1st time. At Thrive we would like to share some top tips with you on how you can best prepare for Motherhood, so that the transition is as smooth as it can be, with fewer unknowns and unhelpful surprises.

These top tips come from a multitude of sources - the Team’s personal experiences, those experiences of friends and families, helping 100s of women professionally and of course, medical papers and articles. We have distilled them into a “Top Ten Tips” list, based on how much they have helped others. If you would like more detail on these tips, please don’t hesitate to reach out and contact us at : [email protected]

 
1. Understand the hormonal and physiological changes your body is undergoing

Increase your knowledge of the hormonal and physiological changes you are going through, so that you understand how to best  take care of yourself. It is...

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