Starting a family could be a good decision, however if you are a working woman the thought of being out of work for quite some time can be disturbing. Basically, employers provide maternity leave for their employees under whom the women have the right to be off work, though in many cases, unpaid for a period of 17 weeks or more.

Hence, pregnancy leave can be defined as the medical leave that is taken by women employees in connection with pregnancy and the disability to work as a result. The disability to work could be before the birth of the baby or after. Pregnancy leave should be discriminated from parental leave that is taken to take care of a child, either biological or adopted.


Leave Pay

Under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, the employers are bound to provide leave pay, insurance and support to their women employees that might get pregnant during their working tenure. The disability to work as a reason of being pregnant should be treated similar to a disability caused by other reasons. Thus, the compensation has to be extended to the pregnant employees as well. The employees are also assured of their jobs after a long pregnancy related absence from work under the Family and Medical Leave Act 1993.


Small Commercial Establishments Exempt

The binding of the act to provide for the pregnant women employees, is limited to employers having more than 15 employees. This often leaves out small commercial establishments and businesses that hire a lesser number of employees. Thus, women employees are not under any cover from the employer. In such a case, taking pregnancy leave insurance is the only resort. The insurance provides for the steady flow of income in case women employees have to take extended leave due to pregnancy related illness or disability. However prior to taking the insurance, it is imperative to know the details and the policies of the companies to weed out any obstacles.


Explanation of Benefits

Even if the employer provides medical insurance to its employees, he/she can forgo the maternity related coverage. That is why it is essential to figure out how to cover one self in case of getting pregnant. The best way to do this is by following the given tips:

Firstly, one should carefully go through the explanation of benefits of the health plan as provided by the employer. All queries must be settled and answers be sought for any doubts that exist.

Secondly, one should be completely familiar with the issues related to pregnancy and the benefits of taking the insurance. Care should be taken to study what time period is covered by the insurance. Is it from the ninth month of pregnancy to the first four weeks after childbirth or does the time period vary? It is also important to study the details of a policy relating to the long-term absence that may be due to complications in pregnancy. With this in mind, pregnant women employees can definitely benefit by taking pregnancy leave insurance with the only consideration being the careful study of the terms and conditions.