Working Mums

[elrsa]

Well today I'm sad, I just found out that 1 of my colleagues is leaving her job today. It's horrible, as she is the one person that I get on most with but I'm also sad because of the reason she has to leave.

You see she took on a job part-time as she has a 1 year old baby and was just starting out from maternity leave. Now she has realised that she can't afford to work part-time anymore and that she needs to go back to full-time work where she can earn enough to provide for her family. Her partner also works, but they just don't get enough in to make ends meet.

It's just so horrible that she has tried her utmost to do the best for her child yet now she has to put him in full time care as its the only way she can provide a better life for him.

I just wish that all that money we pump into NI could go more towards mother's who wish to care for their own children.

[sue w]

It is sad when a mother wants to stay at home with her children but can't. I can remember as a young single mom I had no choice but to work full time too. I didn't even have the luxury of a year with my baby. He was put into a creche at 5 months old. He was very sickly and alot of the time I had to take him to creche when he wasn't 100%. Used to break my heart but what could I do...his food, clothing and the roof over his head had to come from somewhere.

Your friend/colleague must just make the most of her situation. There are alot of wonderful, warm and loving carers out there. She must just appreciate and make the most of the time she does spend with him, as I'm sure she does anyway. It is not the end of the world.....and maybe it is just for the forseeable future, maybe her circumstance will change in time. But is terrible when you so desperately want to stay at home with them. I remember when my 2nd one was born. I returned to work when she was 3 months old....lasted for 3 weeks and then walked out.

[jewels]

Originally posted by elrsa
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I just wish that all that money we pump into NI could go more towards mother's who wish to care for their own children.

whilst i agree that is it sad for her not to have this option and those that hae the options are lucky but the child is 1 year and this is the usual age that working mums go back to work - even 3 to 6 months at our work
it is sad that she wishes to stay at home but is unable
i dont agree that the tax payers have to pay for this tho - a child is your decision adn u and ur family must cope and budget accordingly - i dont like ppl sponging off those who do work
we have enough of those in the dodgy areas were women have babies to get money !

[elrsa]

Originally posted by jewels
whilst i agree that is it sad for her not to have this option and those that hae the options are lucky but the child is 1 year and this is the usual age that working mums go back to work - even 3 to 6 months at our work
it is sad that she wishes to stay at home but is unable
i dont agree that the tax payers have to pay for this tho - a child is your decision adn u and ur family must cope and budget accordingly - i dont like ppl sponging off those who do work
we have enough of those in the dodgy areas were women have babies to get money !

No, she has been working at our office since her baby was 6 months - only your first 6 months are partly funded - you only get £100 a week. She's also been a tax paying citizen for the last 22 years - I think that qulaifies her to be eligible.

It has also been proven through research that children who spend the first 3 years with their mum's are healthier, happier and tend to excel more than those in care from a young age.

The thing is, the government will fund her childcare, so why not instead give her the money so she can care for her own child.

In Sweden and most Scandinavean countries, mother's are paid 80% of their salary for the first 13 months, which at least gives them something of a start.

Lastly without these children, there will be no-one to carry us when we are too old to work, what goes around comes around.

[jewels]

i take ur comments in hand but i dont agree with the 13 month hand out, just becasue it is so open for abuse
sad that those who would truly benefit cannot tho

[Cali]

At our work we get 6 months paid maternity leave. Which is very good I think.

I'm not sure what I would do... hopefully if I have another child, I will be financially secure to stay at home for a full year.

Child Tax Credit only pays a portion of the childcare bill... this was one of the things I had to take into account when I went back to work. I only do 32 hours a week so I'm part time but I still pay the full whack of childcare - my son is in school so I'm only paying from 3.15 - 5.15 - so for 10 hours per week i pay £30. This is not bad at all...compared to the Holiday club which is near enough £100 per week..still not as bad as some ppl.

I was lucky enough to stay at home until my son was nearly 5. I'm really really grateful for those years we have had... it's made us have an unbreakable bond. But I admire all those who went to work. I went to work when Connor was 6 weeks old at first... it was horrible! When he was 4 months old I had to stop!

[spam]

Originally posted by Cali
At our work we get 6 months paid maternity leave. Which is very good I think.

I'm not sure what I would do... hopefully if I have another child, I will be financially secure to stay at home for a full year.

Child Tax Credit only pays a portion of the childcare bill... this was one of the things I had to take into account when I went back to work. I only do 32 hours a week so I'm part time but I still pay the full whack of childcare - my son is in school so I'm only paying from 3.15 - 5.15 - so for 10 hours per week i pay £30. This is not bad at all...compared to the Holiday club which is near enough £100 per week..still not as bad as some ppl.

I was lucky enough to stay at home until my son was nearly 5. I'm really really grateful for those years we have had... it's made us have an unbreakable bond. But I admire all those who went to work. I went to work when Connor was 6 weeks old at first... it was horrible! When he was 4 months old I had to stop!

The option she has chosen may not necessarily have been the right one. The cost of childcare is going to eat into that full time salary and she may well find that after the childcare bills she is worse off than before. As has been said many times, in this type of scenario, provided you have the accommodation, an au-pair is a far better and cheaper way to go. Au-pairs are not salaried, they receive pockey money typically around £70 a week plus board and lodging....we went that route and have never looked back.

[libra]

Nursery is very expensive. Until recently we were paying up to £1000 per month for 1 child to go full-time 5 days a week and my youngest child to go 3 days a week. My salary just covered it, but there wasn't much room to play. It is a tough decision for a mother to make.....

I am the sort of person who isn't a very good stay at home mum (love my kids dearly, but cannot entertain them full-time), so I needed to work to retain some sanity......

[sue w]

Originally posted by egnat
Until recently we were paying up to £1000 per month for ......

sheesh thats crazy.....that is more than our rent per month!!!!!!!! How do they justify charging so much....WOW

[jewels]

Originally posted by sue w
sheesh thats crazy.....that is more than our rent per month!!!!!!!! How do they justify charging so much....WOW

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gosh that does seem expensive - but as u say, it is for 2 children

i note that some parents do the necessary math to see whether it is worth working
that seems the option in many cases, from what i see on the boards