How soon can I take maternity leave?
My work is keeping me away from home (far job location with company accomodation) and I miss my family and 2 y/o daughter so much. I’m considering taking an early maternity leave which I’ve worked out the earliest I can start to be 21st March (according to the maternity calculator online). This means I won’t qualify for maternity allowance as I just started the job in December. I’m at cross roads here. Do I just stick it out till May and qualify for the allowance or take leave early and go be with my family? I’m confused honestly!
It depends if you are planning to return after your maternity leave. For me, I will be going back to work after the baby and can’t afford to take a full year off. I’m trying to start my leave as late as possible so I get the most amount of time with my second child. I would love to spend more time with my first but don’t want my second to miss out because of it. It also depends on your finances. Can you afford to take maternity leave early and miss out on any pay you would get? x