-
Any further developments littlesprocket?
-
Well I was told about the casual stuff from my boss however its the admin manager thats supposed to tell me about it and she just keeps saying "oh we will talk about it next week". She is real dodgy. So my husband and I discussed it and Im just going to put in for maternity leave starting at 36weeks and thats it. No doing 3 days and 4 days a week. That way when I come back I have to be offered my same full time job back and they cant come back and say "oh but u were part time when u left" blar blar blar. Plus Im over working already so Im gonna go for the break. I was going to look for government work while on maternity leave anyways so hopefully wont have to go back to original job.
-
have you put in your mat leave already? you have to give them 10 weeks notice I thought, under legislation?
-
Up here in Queensland u have to notify them your pregnant and that u intend on going on maternity leave and then put in for your maternity leave 6 weeks before u go. I gonna write my letter today and email it off to the relevant people and see how that all goes down.
-
cool :) I wasn't sure whether it was a state specific thing, good luck!
-
I sent off my email with all attachments of leave forms and I got a very angry email back almost straight away. Apparently I was never spoken to properly about the matter and it was not their intentions to put me back to casual. They wanted to put me on a higher hourly rate (like casual) when I went down to 4 and 3 days a week so they didnt have to pay holiday or sick pay during those weeks (must be too hard for them to figure out). This was followed by "We thought this would be better for u". They then went on to say that they intended on me coming back to full time work after maternity leave but I just dont trust that. People say things and it just doesnt happen. If u take holiday and sick pay off me and put my hourly rate up, thats casual. So Im in the poo right now with work cos I didnt discuss it properly with the admin manager and only discussed it with my a immediate boss (silly me, who would have thought I couldnt talk about it with my boss).
-
I think you've done the right thing. You're fully entitled to holiday/sick pay for those 3 or 4 weeks. Milk them for all they're worth!!
-
My boss came into me yesterday and told me that Ive upset the Admin Manager because in my email I said "By Law". I used this when I was explaining how long I had to notify them of maternity leave. Still trying to see what the problem is here. My boss then went on to say "U know we dont still to the law here". I told him "Well u kinda have to in some situations". He was like "Yeah I know". I said to him I need something in writing saying I will be coming back to fulltime same job when coming back from maternity leave and I will not be made casual. They are still insisting that what they want to do is not casual so I want that in the letter too. Im now having a meeting today with them all to discuss. The admin manager wont even look at me. Its awesome.
-
Keep sticking to your guns. You had every right to say 'by law...', and that's exactly what it is. Make sure you don't leave there without that letter.
-
Also have them put their intentions upon your return in writing too...
Because if you sign or agree to them taking your holida pay eytc then it makes it VERY difficult upon your return....
Stick to your guns!
-
Jeepers, little sprocket, this is a saga!
What the hell was the admin manager getting his knickers in a knot about? Because you used the phrase "by law"? But if you have to legally notify them a certain time before the date, then you have to use that phrase!
And you can't talk about it with your boss?!? WTF?
I'm with the others- get EVERYTHING in writing and then make certified copies of it. And hunt for another job. ;)
Good luck!
Kirsten
-
Littlesprocket
A flyer just came around at work yesterday regarding the government's IR laws and employees rights. The most interesting one to me was:
You can't be fired for being pregnant or for being a carer for your child/ren
You can't be asked to go casual and as everyone else has said you lose ALL your rights the minute you do.
You need to inform your employer in writing at least 10 weeks before you plan to go on maternity leave. Even though you have told them verbally this is important.
Go the Australian Govt website and look through there ... that is where i found out everything. Maternity leave is covered under FEDERAL legislation and is not state based.
If you need any help with writing a letter or something, please let me know. I am not a professional, but I do work closely with our HR department so i get to know the things they are looking for.
BTW, most companies require you to finish up at 34 weeks - any longer than that and you need a doctor's letter. If you have a dr's letter, you can work as long as you like.
Sounds to me like your employer is just a bit stuck and doesn't really know what they have to do. Perhaps give them the benefit of the doubt and that they suggested casual as they thought it might make it easier for you ... that can perhaps help to calm the waters and make it easier when you want to negotiate things.
Good luck!
-
Good thing you're getting some action now littlesprocket, that's great. Sounds as if this is the first time they've encountered something like this situation so it'll be a good learning curve for them as well as you. Good to see you've got the upper hand.
