#WHEN SHOULD YOU ANNOUNCE YOUR PREGNANCY MANUAL#
#WHEN SHOULD YOU ANNOUNCE YOUR PREGNANCY PROFESSIONAL#

No need to call a special meeting just to announce the news-simply tack it on to the agenda at the next all team meeting. Once you have announced to your boss and HR, don’t wait more than a few days to let everyone else know. Because let’s not kid ourselves, the motherhood penalty is real.ĭon’t Wait To Make The News Official For Everyone Else Many cities and states have additional policies, so simply Google “YOUR CITY Family Medical Leave Act” and “YOUR STATE Family Medical Leave Act.” Plus, be sure to check out what qualifies as pregnancy discrimination here. If you live in the United States, you are most likely covered by the FMLA, so read up on what your rights are on a federal level (typically 12 weeks of time off, unpaid). But don’t show up to the meeting without doing your homework.

#WHEN SHOULD YOU ANNOUNCE YOUR PREGNANCY MANUAL#

So dig up your employee manual if you have it and set up a meeting with your company’s HR representative to get the down low on exactly what the company provides and what it doesn’t. Sure, they probably breezed over the family-leave policies when you were hired, but we are betting the info didn’t stick.

#WHEN SHOULD YOU ANNOUNCE YOUR PREGNANCY PROFESSIONAL#

Professional (and personal) reactions are hard to predict, so simply deliver the news in a positive way, and promise that more details on your maternity leave plans will be forthcoming. And despite how tight your relationship is, keep the news brief and professional. Tell them face-to-face if possible, and schedule a meeting versus surprising them desk-side. This could be your immediate manager or boss, or, if you are at the top of the food chain yourself, your direct subordinate or right-hand employee. Just don’t wait so long that your company feels blindsided by the news. If you are waiting to hear about a promotion or are suspicious that your company may be less than supportive, take a beat, spend some time getting to know your rights, and wait until you feel comfortable-or the oversized tops aren’t hiding it anymore. But if hiding it is no problem, there is also no need to spill the beans right at 12 weeks. Sometimes, letting a close superior or co-worker in on the news early is a necessity, especially if you are suffering from serious morning sickness or other health conditions that are effecting your attendance or performance. Are you connected to your boss or coworkers on social media? Then wait 13 weeks, and make sure to tell them face-to-face at the office first.

Hence the 12-week-wait to share the sonogram on social.

By the 12th week that risk drops significantly. The reality is 10 to 20 percent of known pregnancies end in miscarriage. Whether you are the boss and need to assure your employees that the train will keep speeding along while you’re in L&D, or you’re just starting out at a new company and don’t want to spook your boss, we have rounded up the best advice for broadcasting your bump in the workplace, as well as some key facts on your rights. But while you may spill it to your bestie using an off-color GIF and three dozen emojis, telling the people you work with requires some dramatically different messaging. One of the very best parts of being pregnant is spreading the good news.

When should you announce your pregnancy