Obviously The People Who Make These Rules Have Never Been Pregnant!

One of the things on my to do list for June is to turn my leave of absence form in at work. My boss really hasn't asked me much about my plans just when I was leaving, and was satisfied with my vague late September answer. The last person at work who had a baby came back after four weeks so I don't want him to get the wrong idea and think I may do the same. So I made a few phone calls so I could make a decision and get my paperwork in. So I called to get the details of my leave and our short term disability policy. The lady I spoke to (who was not too friendly) told me that I could get payed for 6 weeks after the birth at what amounts to a pathetic 30% of my regular pay. I asked her how long I could get paid for before the birth and she said none. WTF? Seriously my job is very physically demanding. First of all I am on my feet for the entire 8 hour workday except for my lunch break, second it demands almost constant lifting and bending. My feet are already killing me by the end of the day and I'm sure my back isn't far behind. So she says I can work up until the birth, and then starts saying something about when you register at the hospital they should have a good idea of the date then. Huh? I know there are always new advances and changes when it comes to childbirth, but this is news to me. Granted the last time I gave birth in a hospital was over 9 years ago, but back then you registered about 2 months before. The purpose of this was to save you paperwork when you arrived in labor, and funny thing there was still paperwork!! They were not actually able to tell me when I would give birth that must be new (ha ha). I was very frustrated after getting off the phone with this lady. I made my second phone call, and more importantly I have decided on dates for my leave I will be taking a total of 15 weeks off of work I will miss Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas all very busy times in my department. My boss is going to be sooo happy. I feel much better now that I have this worked out.