Child #1: 3 months
Child #2: 4 months
Child #3: 6 months

None of these leaves, however, were long enough. : )

I had just left a job and then found out I was pregnant. As I searched for a job, I realized that being pregnant is the death knell for a job search (they don't actually say that is why they don't hire you but it's very obvious). So I went out on my own for good and am now completely freelance and loving it.

I lived in the former Soviet Union and the moms there get 2 years. They get something like 60% of their paycheck and a guaranteed job if they take a 2-year leave. Incredible that an 'emerging' country knows how to take care of moms better than we do.

Children are clearly not a priority to our government and we pay dearly for that.

Edamommy

My firstborn child is about to turn 30, so my experience qualifies as ancient history. The obstetrician said "What do you want the note to say?" I got 12 weeks maternity leave then, on the basis of the doctor's note. When my second son was born at 4 lbs. 6 oz. I assumed I would be able to get the same leave, but the same doctors said their hands were tied and I had to go back to work at 6 weeks.

I got six weeks without pay, but did get short-term disability. Because I work for a small non-profit, FMLA doesn't apply and the law entitled me to absolutely nothing. My organization was benevolent enough to let me keep my job, though, and when I did come back at 6 weeks they let me work part-time for a couple of months. Unfortunately, because I received this "benefit" I have not been given any sort of raise, despite being at my job for two years. Between the cost of daycare and gas, I'm barely breaking even. They do provide me with a place to pump, though, and I am really thankful for that. My German relatives were appalled that I was only allowed to take 6 weeks. For all the talk of family values, you would think that FMLA wouldn't be so lousy.

With both children I took the 6 weeks of sick leave and an additional 2 weeks of vacation. I would have loved to take the 6 months allowed but it would have been unpaid after my 6 weeks of sick time and we couldn't afford to do that. Thankfully, my employer does have a lactation room and I was able to utilize it several times a day easily.

The daycare we selected didn't take infants until they are four months old. FMLA guaranteed me 12 weeks. With both children, my employer let me take the FMLA on a non-consecutive basis, so I went back to work part time from 2-4 months, and then full-time after 4 months, and my husband also worked part time when the children were from two to four months old. Not ideal. And most of my FMLA time was unpaid, since I used up my paid sick leave and vacation leave pretty quickly (which I was required to use up as part of my FMLA leave).

It is very frustrating that almost every other nation, including those that are emerging/under developed and those that consider women to be inferior in society, have far better maternity leave programs than the U.S. I work for a federal gov't organization so I was able to use unpaid FMLA for 12 weeks, plus another 2 weeks of my own paid leave. But that was not enough time! And my organization does not offer short term disability. FMLA only ensures that you'll have a job to return to after 12 weeks, not that you can or should be paid or not. More should be done to secure the financial aspect of maternity leave. It is terrible that paid leave is not offered more, even if it is a fraction of your salary. Now, I do have to say that my work allowed me to return part-time and has been very flexible about that. And we have a lactation room in my bldg that was wonderful to have and allowed my to breast feed my son much longer than I could have without such a convenient set up.

I can see that this a pretty hot topic - it's gotten a lot of us talking, or rather writing!