(no subject)

[charlottezweb]

Birthday weekend was lovely. We drove up to Cola and met H and J for the state fair on Sunday. H gave me a beautiful butterfly necklace made from Costa Rican sea shells, all pretty pastels in pinks and blues and purples. :) The baby loved the fair--he wanted to ride every ride! We started with the baby roller coaster and then rode everything else until we ran out of tickets. He played the duck game and came home with a stuffed fish and a plastic sword (the games were super expensive this year so that was the only one we played). We split a bunch of fair food and looked at all the animals and crafts (not as many crafts this year, which was weird).

Tuesday, I had a big OB appt with lots of shots and tests. I passed my gestational diabetes test, so no more testing or food charting, unlike last time, got my rhogam shot, redid the prenatal panel since my previous OB's office never sent my file over, and did a thryoid panel, which showed things are gettting more normal, yay!

ETA: Found out the reason I don't look very pregnant! Baby is transverse--lying from side to side in my belly--so instead of sticking out, my belly is spread across. And I'm feeling more movement, because I'm getting hands and feet along the edges.

Also dropped my laptop off at a local repair place to see if they could clean it out. Should hear something soon.

Monday, our "HR rep" talked to me abt maternity leave, and I offered some other ideas as a starting point for further discussion (more unpaid leave but coming in for projects, part time work for a period, etc. Before lunch today, he told me no negotiations would be acceptable--the original offer would be the only offer. 6 weeks unpaid but I'd get to keep my job and I could have time off for MD appts if the baby got sick. Honestly, even if I were planning on daycaring the kid that early, I'm not sure I could find anywhere with an opening for a 6 week old--they are rare as well as super expensive. I'm glad I asked since I feel like I gave it my best shot but now I have to decide how to proceed.

(Of course, the possibly ironic part is that I overheard the rest of the office, 5 upper middle class white men, talking this morning about the country's alarming slide towards socialism--"it used to be no one wanted a hand out from the government!" etc, etc. And then they offer me this leave "package" with the attitude that it's generous. Um, privilege much?)
 

Comments

[dr-brat.livejournal.com]

what assholes.

[charlottezweb.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Although, to be fair, they aren't bad people, just...I don't know.

[hfnuala.livejournal.com]

And then they'll complain if you don't stay 'we gave her every possible chance!'

[snippy]

Check with your state labor law division, or a lawyer--I think that offer is illegal, sounds like it violates FMLA (Family Medical Leave Act), which is a federal law.

[charlottezweb.livejournal.com]

Sadly, only companies with 50 or more employees are bound by FMLA, so they're off the hook. Only 6 of us here.

The only thing they can't do is actually fire me for being pregnant, although, since this a "right to work" state (woo-hoo!) they could, since they don't have to provide a reason.

[hkbear.livejournal.com]

Sounds as much as could be expected, if not better really.

Yay, healthy pregnancy!

[charlottezweb.livejournal.com]

I guess, but it doesn't make much sense from a financial point of view--better to work to retain the employee they have than start fresh. And I really wasn't asking for much...but I know...I knew they wouldn't go for anything different...I just don't really understand why. *sigh*

[hkbear.livejournal.com]

I assume they never thought they'd be in this position. The Admin before me was 65+. It does make some $ sense, more than likely they'd look for someone younger or single, lower insurance premiums and lower starting pay. Temps are super expensive so finding someone new would actually be more cost effective.
They are difficult, but you knew that. :(

[prairierabbit.livejournal.com]

This is *exactly* why I am so frustrated by government policies on these sorts of issues. We need better laws and we need social policies that support those who are in caregiving roles. *sigh*
The daughter of a friend is now living (probably permanently) in the Netherlands, and things there are so much more civilized.

Hugs!

(And a big HUZZAH for the good pregnancy news! That's great!)

[crystlyte.livejournal.com]

Sympathies on the job situation. They do sound like a locked into one approach type of souls and not at all open to possibilities. People like that make me sad and infuriate me at the same time.

Hooray for the pregnancy news though! Hope that thyroid keeps going in the right direction - that mucks up so much stuff.