Back to work??

i posted this else where but got no help! so maybe i will here

i was working 2 jobs before i had arquene and i wasnt going back to one of them( im a bar person, and a childcare cook). but now we are having a few financial issues so i went and asked if i could go back to the childcare for a couple days a week.(i have been back at the pub for 3 months)

do i have to go back the full 5 days? can they say its either 5 days or nothing?

i also know the girl who they got hates it and stresses out very easily over the job so i thought job share would work in this situation!


i asked for a years maternity leave and it would be up beginning of june.

thanks for your help

I am pretty certain it depends on whether or not you were full time before you went on leave. They basically just ahve to give you back the same job as you had before .

So if it was full time before, then they have to offer you full time. You can ask for part time, but its up to them whether or not they will agree. If you were working part time before, then they have to offer you part time.

When I took my maternity leave, I was working full time but got told I could come back part time. When I rang to speak to them about coming back, I was told "its full time or nothing". I kicked up a big stink about it and they have now offered me part time hours.

I think a job share would work well too, especially if the other girl gets stressed easily. It will give her the chance to have a bit of a break.

Good luck

Depends on your union or award. In teaching I have the right to work part time until Riley is at school even though I was full time before he was born. I would go and ask them anyway, or maybe get another job elsewhere?

Do you have a contract or an award / workplace agreement / EBA or CA? If you have a right to return on a part time basis then it will be in there. However in many cases the employer only has to give returning part time "reasonable consideration" so that they can say full time or nothing depending on their mood.

Might be worth sending a note to your boss or giving them a call.