Paternity Leave 13 February at 7:06PM in Employment, Jobseeking & Training 7 replies 358 views

Jimmycr

Hi, 

So my parter has just found out she is pregnant. Unplanned but over the moon!!

I am currently doing my teacher training and start my first job on September 1st 2020. Bump will be due in October. Am I still entitled to paternity leave of any form does anyone know?

Thanks 

walwyn1978

Unfortunately I think you’re out of luck - I don’t think you’ll have been there long enough. 

https://www.nasuwt.org.uk/advice/conditions-of-service/maternity/paternity.html

You could ask them for an unpaid leave of absence, and you’d hope they’d give that to you. 

KatrinaWaves

You’ll have the October half term and Christmas. You won’t get any paid and it’s unlikely they’ll be super happy with you taking unpaid leave so soon into the school year and the first half/term of your NQT... 

Jimmycr

Thanks everyone I did think that I wouldn't be entitled to it. I'm sure they will let me have the birth off but I guess I'll just have to miss the first couple of weeks of my child's life and hope it works in my favour in the long run. 

Thanks again

spadoosh

You absolutely are entitled to paternity leave. What you will not be entitled to is paternity pay. They will not be able to stop you taking a week or two off after the birth of your child, they will not have to pay you for this time off. 

Sorry this is wrong, i was under the impression that everyone was entitled to the relevant leave just not necessary entitled to the pay. Ie you cant stop a woman taking 9 months off work, you dont neccessarily have to pay them if they dont qualify though. That doesnt seem to be the case with men. 

jackandcoke

Jimmycr said:

Thanks everyone I did think that I wouldn't be entitled to it. I'm sure they will let me have the birth off but I guess I'll just have to miss the first couple of weeks of my child's life and hope it works in my favour in the long run. 

Thanks again

Um........I'm sure your child will still grown up fine only seeing you in the evenings in the first few weeks.

Savvy_Sue

Those of us who had children in the days before paternity leave seem to have survived, along with our children. In fact DH went back to work the day after DS1 was born - half asleep because we'd had very little of that during the long labour - and only took time off when I came out of hospital. 

Plus, predicted summary of the first couple of weeks of your child's life: 

• Sleep
• Feed
• require nappy change
• require change of babygro
• scream
• feed
• sleep
• scream
• require change of babygro
• require nappy change
• require change of babygro

Repeat ad infinitum. Possibly include 'weeing on the ceiling the moment you take the nappy off' somewhere in that list (if it's a boy, and only until you learn to keep the old nappy folded over their rude bits until the new one is lined up ready). Definitely include at least one explosion of yellow liquid out of every side of the nappy, all over all their clothes and probably yours too, plus the changing mat and bathroom floor. If you're lucky, there won't be so much screaming. If not lucky, EVERYTHING will be accompanied by screams. 

Now, I'm not saying that it wouldn't be good for you to be at home for those first couple of weeks, thus enabling your wife to maybe take the occasional shower, drink the odd cup of tea, and eat the occasional meal. She MIGHT even want to get out of her pyjamas and into some real clothes, possibly even leave the house! But you are honestly unlikely to miss many interesting BABY moments in the first few weeks if you're at work during the day, because they have little concept of day and night, so anything they've done during the day (see above) they will repeat throughout the night. And your wife will probably be only too pleased to thrust the little darling into your arms the moment you come home from work, and leave you to it for as long as it takes her to maybe take a shower, drink a hot cup of tea, and eat something. She may be ready for a nap as well, and very glad if you sort out a meal. 

The interesting moments come later, and go on for a LOOOOONG time. DS1 is in his 30s now, and we've had a couple of them just recently!

unforeseen

That sums it up perfectly.