Had to extend maternity leave - how do I return?

[stephen68]

Hi everyone! I had my baby February 2023, and was due to return to work February 2024 but with the childcare crisis I had to extend my leave. I now have secured child care, and e-mailed my bosses May 9th stating I can officially return June 3rd and… crickets. I sent a follow up e-mail May 21st, and another e-mail yesterday.
I have confirmation that they received all of the e-mails but just haven’t responded, and my replacement is also totally in the dark about what’s going to happen with them.
I have a gut feeling they aren’t going to have me back, am I being paranoid? If that is the case what are my rights? I’m stressing out but I’m also feeling so bad for my replacement as we’re both just in limbo right now. I could have my EI extended but I would need to know before June 1st otherwise my claim will be closed.

 

[chelleaiken81]

@stephen68 Time to call if email isn’t working!

 

[jehovah_freak]

@stephen68 Maybe post in r/babybumpscanada for more experience as well if anyone has gone through this!

 

[stephen68]

I should have mentioned I’m located in Canada!

 

[pchilde3]

@stephen68 Respectfully I knew it was Canada as soon as I saw the one year mat leave haha-

Signed, jealous in the USA

 

[violagirl]

@pchilde3 I was going to say the same because I had to quit my job in the US because of childcare, my 3 week unpaid leave couldn't be extended.

 

[pchilde3]

@violagirl I took unpaid time + short term disability + PTO

 

[lsume]

@pchilde3 Yup

 

[wc0476]

@stephen68 Do you have an HR department? Email them and CC your boss and include the other dates you reached out.

Also have you tried calling?

 

[glory35]

@stephen68 Do you have an HR function? Email them.

 

[inaaminaam55]

@stephen68 Was the extended time granted by then? Was there a return date decided upon mutually?

 

[stephen68]

@inaaminaam55 I emailed in January about the leave extension and offered/suggested working hybrid remote (my partner works shift work so I’d have to work from home days he works) and they said they couldn’t accommodate for that but approved the extended leave. There was no agreed upon return date but I had let them know it could be until August. However when I secured child care I let them know (which brings us to this post!)

 

[ewetsade]

@stephen68 Companies in Canada are required to provide up to the maximum number of weeks of leave. Employers MUST allow employees to take the full 17 maternity weeks + 61 parental weeks, even if you say “oh I’ll probably take a year” the ESA (in Ontario at least) advises employers to prepare for and anticipate the full 78 weeks. They weren’t being nice or accommodating they were following legislated requirements.

You should give 4 weeks notice of your return, and they need to accommodate your return. You clearly have done this, but for some reason nobody is getting back to you.

I would suggest that you continue to try to reach out to people at the company, if there’s HR make sure you reach out to them, if not continue to try to get a reply from increasingly senior managers. Call, email, do your best. If there is an office location and you still haven’t heard after emailing and calling multiple people, maybe (worst case) you could arrange lunch with some of your coworkers and casually ask for your boss on a day they’ll be in the office?

Hopefully it’s just that people are busy or nobody knows whose job it is to get back to you?

 

[inaaminaam55]

@stephen68 Are they paying you for the extended leave?

 

[stephen68]

@inaaminaam55 No they haven’t paid me since going on maternity leave!

 

[inaaminaam55]

@stephen68 Then I’d be worried I was replaced. Definitely call.

 

[moustafa]

@inaaminaam55 Yes sounds like she needs to look for a new job

 

[ewetsade]

@inaaminaam55 Employers don’t pay people on maternity leave in Canada.

 

[eliyahu777]

@ewetsade Some do offer top up (my current job does) but not all and it’s not required.

 

[ewetsade]

@eliyahu777 Right some companies do offer a top up, usually it’s for the first 17 or 26 weeks, but that fact that the company was not paying a top up wouldn’t be cause for concern in Canada in the way it might in the states, as maternity and parental leaves are job protected unpaid leaves across the country.