Paternity Leave

[thecoffeehouse204]

Can anyone who has taken paternity leave from Royal Mail offer us some advice please.
We're expecting our first baby in October so hubby has already informed his DOM that the due date is 6th October, DOM said his paternity leave had to start from the monday before that as it had to be in full weeks, we were a bit concerned as obviously with it being my first chances are i'll go overdue and thought we might end up in the situation that he's finished his leave before baby arrives. When he asked about changing it he was told ok but he needed to give 28 days notice of the date's he wanted instead. From various things we've read on the internet however it looks like paternity leave isn't allowed to start until the baby is born so what are we meant to do, baby isn't going to give us 28 days notice of her exact arrival date! In a way I can understand them wanting to know exact dates so they can plan cover for him but unfortunately it's not really like a holiday so we can't plan exact dates. So those of you that have taken paternity leave how did it work, did you just start you leave on the day baby was born or have to book the leave a few weeks past the due date so you could be sure of it being after baby's arrival? It's all so confusing and the DOM really doesn't seem to have a clue.

[POSTMAN]

This is a tough one,the little blighters can arrive any bloody time,i've been there done it and got the sick on me shoulder.

Personally i've always managed to get away with it as such,i tell them when it's due and just wait,when they have been born i take my time off then.
Was only 1 week then though.

Then if memory serves me right i asked for another week which your old man may not need as you get 2 now.

Things are so different now and much harder,just depends on what manager he's got.But if i was to have another one,i would do exactly the same,wait till it's born then go off.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Might be worth contacting any of these

For further information on your statutory rights
please refer to:
http://www.direct.gov.uk/parents" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.acas.org.uk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.adviceguide.org.uk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Linda Roy
National Equality Officer
Email: lroy@cwu.org
Tel: O2O 8971 7238

or reading the
Paternity Rights Fact Sheet at http://www.royalmailchat.co.uk/communit ... php?id=884" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; although this is slightly out of date as RM now do 2 weeks Paternity Pay not 1 .

[TeeferTiger]

When someone in our office was waiting for his partner to give birth, it was basically "your paternity starts when the baby arrives". His baby arrived on a Tuesday, 2 or 3 weeks earlier than it should've done so his leave started then.

[gerardy]

Read the above post with the links,
I can remember reading that you can take it up to a certain number of weeks after the child is born
Hope you get the time off you need

[clashcityrocker]

and the DOM really doesn't seem to have a clue.

Ask the twat what he did for his paternity leave.
Oh no I forgot you can't be a DOM and have kids.

Perhaps we could have a competition - What my DOM does know. (Answers on the back of a stamp please)

[holmsey]

and the DOM really doesn't seem to have a clue.

Ask the twat what he did for his paternity leave.
Oh no I forgot you can't be a DOM and have kids.

Perhaps we could have a competition - What my DOM does know. (Answers on the back of a stamp please)

[Throgg]

DOM said his paternity leave had to start from the monday before that as it had to be in full weeks,

Wrong. You can't take odd days, you either have to take 1 full week or 2 full weeks, but the time off can start on any day of the week. Below is an extract from http://www.direct.gov.uk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; on paternity leave,

"Your Statutory Paternity Leave can start on any day of the week (but not before the baby is born). It has to finish within 56 days of the baby's birth. If the baby is born before the week it was due, it must finish within 56 days of the first day of that week. You can start Statutory Paternity Leave after a period of parental leave has ended."

As in the case of all my kids, i started my paternity leave the day my wife was released from hospital, but my position was slightly different since our kids were all born premature.

When he asked about changing it he was told ok but he needed to give 28 days notice of the date's he wanted instead.

This is correct, however you are permitted to give less than 28 days notice if you have a valid reason, for example, your baby is born premature. This is where i was able to change the date of my paternity leave, giving only 6 days notice.

Another example would be if your baby is born after the the expected date, because you cannot start your paternity leave until the baby is born. Again when the expected date came and went your hubby would have to inform his manager that the date of his leave was changing, but it would be unreasonable to expect your hubby to give him 28 days notice.

Remember whatever you choose, the needs of you and your baby are what matters.

[thecoffeehouse204]

Thanks for all the advice, i guess he'll just have to have a sit down with the DOM in the next few weeks and maybe put down for his paternity leave to start the monday after my due date and hope we end up being lucky or catch the DOM in a good mood when I do go into labour. They really should look into the practicalities of the having to give 28 days notice as it seems like a lot of places try to use it as a cast iron rule with no flexibility.

and the DOM really doesn't seem to have a clue.

Ask the twat what he did for his paternity leave.
Oh no I forgot you can't be a DOM and have kids.

Perhaps we could have a competition - What my DOM does know. (Answers on the back of a stamp please)

That's the bizarre thing - when hubby first went to tell him we were expecting the DOM kept him chatting for about 15 mins about when his baby was born last year, of course because he's management he could just disappear off whenever he liked unlike the foot soldiers who have to actually have to be replaced by someone on their walk.

[fishtank]

That's the bizarre thing - when hubby first went to tell him we were expecting the DOM kept him chatting for about 15 mins about when his baby was born last year, of course because he's management he could just disappear off whenever he liked unlike the foot soldiers who have to actually have to be replaced by someone on their walk.

That's the thing about managers...no-one really misses them.
Sometimes at my place there are 8 and sometimes there are 3 and really it makes not a damm bit of difference either way.
Expendable i think is the politest way to describe them.
Good luck with your new arrival...

[piller]

just put in dates when baby is due and your manager should be flexible in givin u the paternity leave when baby arrives.. my last son was 2wks overdue and had no probs,,also had leave booked when babs was born...goodluck!!!!

[Throgg]

Thanks for all the advice, i guess he'll just have to have a sit down with the DOM in the next few weeks and maybe put down for his paternity leave to start the monday after my due date and hope we end up being lucky or catch the DOM in a good mood when I do go into labour.

Give him the due date rather than the Monday after. Remember you don't have to take paternity leave Monday to Saturday, you can take the full 2 weeks starting any day of the week.

[clashcityrocker]

my last son was 2wks overdue

Sex
Curry
Exercise
Pineapple.

Surely one of them would have worked?

[POSTMAN]

my last son was 2wks overdue

Sex
Curry
Exercise
Pineapple.

Surely one of them would have worked?

1st 3 yes,but what do you do with the 4th?

[fishtank]

1st 3 yes,but what do you do with the 4th?

I was too scared to ask...lets hope you have it on your gammon steak....and that's not code either.