So you’re a pregnant teacher (or adopting teacher), and you’re planning to take maternity leave from the classroom. It sounds like congratulations are in order … and you’ve probably got a lot of questions running through your mind. How do you plan for your time out of the classroom. Do teachers get maternity leave? What about paternity leave for male teachers? And can you get paid leave if you’re taking time off from the classroom?
As teachers, we love to plan and organize, and your impending bundle of joy is an exciting reason to get out the sticky notes, highlighters and planner. The teachers on the Teach Starter teacher team have pulled together this list of teacher-specific preparations for you to schedule before your baby arrives and your long-term substitute takes over.
Read on to find out what US laws say about maternity leave for teachers and how to plan for your time out of the classroom.
You may have already talked to the folks in the main office or the teacher’s union, or maybe you haven’t, and you’re wondering how much maternity leave teachers get or if you even qualify for time off. The good news: The US Family Medical Leave Act is federal, and it guarantees all new parents (moms or dads) 12 weeks of time off after the birth or adoption of a new baby.
There are some states that require employers to give even more time off to new parents. For example, California law states that private employers with 50 employees or more and all public sector employers must provide up to 12 weeks unpaid family leave plus 4 months of maternity disability leave. That works out to a total of 28 weeks of parental leave per year.
Meanwhile, in Washington D.C., the law protects employees who take up to 16 weeks of unpaid leave during a 24-month period.
To see the exact amount time you can take off for a new child in your state, check out the parental leave by state guide from the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Now for the not-so-good news: The federal law does not require employers to pay their employees during those 12 weeks, and that includes teacher maternity leave pay. The law just stipulates that employers have to allow the time off, and they can’t fire them for taking a maternity leave.
With no federal mandate, paid maternity leave and paternity leave are both up to your local laws and individual school district. Some districts do offer paid time off for new parents, while in others, district contracts allow teachers to use their accrued sick leave to ensure they can still get a paycheck during time out of the classroom with a new baby.
Again, you’ll want to check out the laws for your state, as they may be on your side. As of 2024, 13 states and the District of Columbia have enacted mandatory paid family leave policies. Those states include:
Just how much teachers can be paid during a maternity leave or a paternity leave varies from state to state. California teachers, for example, are eligible for coverage from the California Paid Family Leave insurance program, which provides up to eight weeks of paid leave to care for a seriously ill child, spouse, parent, or registered domestic partner or to bond with a new child. You won’t get your full salary — the benefit works out to about 55 percent of your weekly wage — but it’s certainly better than no pay at all!
Once you’ve determined how much time you’ll be able to take off, it’s time to get planning.
The first trimester is defined as conception to 12 weeks.
The second trimester is from weeks 13-27.
The third trimester is from weeks 28-40.
And that’s it! Feel free to copy and paste this list of teacher-specific preparations for maternity leave into your planner or spreadsheet. You can add it to your existing (non-teacher) checklist or keep this one separate.
We’re wishing you all the best with your new arrival!
