It was heart-wrenching to go back to my career after my baby arrived, but luckily I had worked out a solution that gave me as much time off as possible over the course of his first year.  It required some creative thinking, some begging, and some negotiation, but it was worth it!

As you may have read in my last post, I found that the time I spent at home increased the quality of our lives and the quality of the environment. We were able to prepare homemade meals, hang cloth diapers out to dry, and generally spend less money. 

So how do you ask your supervisor for the best solution for your family?  Here are a few tips that worked for me.

  • Think of a win-win-win solution. It’s possible to come up with a situation that is best for your family, your business, and your clients.  In my case, I found that spreading out my sick leave provided more consistency to my students, less cost to my school district, and an easier job for my supervisor.  When I presented it as such, my boss was very supportive.
  • Problem solve before you make a proposal.  Are you the only one at work who can do a specific task?  If so, can you train someone so that they’ll be ready when you go on leave?  Can your company bring in an experienced, retired person to work temporarily during your leave so that training won’t be an issue?  There’s always a way to solve the dilemma and it will impress your supervisor if you can come up with it!  In my case, my leave request meant that there would be a Spanish class I wouldn’t be able to teach a few days a week.  I proposed that we changed the course to Spanish Language and Latino Art and teamed up with an amazing art teacher.  My principals were thrilled and my students enjoyed the whole experience.
  •  Realize that family leave time is your right.  If you end up being pressured by your supervisors to come back before your three months of leave time is up, remember that it’s your legal right to have that time off.  The only exception is if your business has fewer than 50 employees or if you haven’t worked a total of 1,250 hours in the previous 12 months.   Otherwise, they have to let you have the leave and give your job back afterwards.  

In short, there are ways to negotiate a personalized solution that works for your family and your budget. You’ll be glad you took the initiative to explore all options and be even more appreciative when baby arrives and you get the chance to sleep in!  How did you handle going back to work or how did you make staying home fit into your budget?  We’d love to hear your stories. 

Thanks for adding your Thrifty Green Thursday links below so that all of our readers can learn from your simple tips on how to save a bit of money and the planet.  Everyone’s welcome, but if you don’t know where to start, click here for directions.  Thanks for joining us this week!