Maternity Leave with No Pay

S.,

Have you heard of Community Action Program, they can help, I just don't know to what extent. Hope this helps!

Hi S.,

You have received some good advice. Have you been in contact with a local crisis pregnancy center? If not, there is one in Garland, Metro Family Pregnancy Center, ###-###-####. We (I volunteer there) won't be able to help with with money. If you are still pregnant (and it sounds like you are) you can be set up as a client and then will be able to receive help with other baby related items as they are available - baby cribs, car seats, strollers, baby formula, diapers, baby and maternity clothes, etc. As long as we have what you need, you are more than welcome to it. There is also a food pantry in the same building.

Hi S.,
Try calling 2-1-1. This is United Way's clearinghouse for social services referrals. You prob won't reach them til after the holiday weekend. Good luck.

M.

You can go on state disability. Thats what I did...I also had some paid time off saved so between the two I was able to get a "full check" every two weeks. If your employer doesn't have a paid time off program, check into state disability and also I hate to say it ...welfare, our gonvernment put these programs in place to help people in need....If you don't have anyone to help you financially you may qualify for some assistance. Hope this helps :)

Do you have disability insurance? I had a short term policy that gave me 6 weeks pay.

S.,
Please don't take this as I am beating you up. My heart goes out to you; however, you ARE very young, especially to have two children and be a single mom. This is not just for you but all young ladies. If you plan on being a single parent, please have a plan in place; i.e., either family assistance or some sort of savings for instances just like this. It is way too easy to get dependent on government assistance and way too difficult to become undependent. I know you can become independent of governement assistance, my mom was a single mom of two and had to count on the government from time to time, but it wasn't easy. I truly wish you the best.

You have received some excellent advice. The one thing that I would add is that once your baby is born, you need to get on some good birth control. Having another child that you can't support is not a good idea.

Please also consider lots of ways to save money, such as selling your car and paying cash for a decent used car (which also means you would only have liability insurance), cancel your TV cable (if you have it), cancel cell phones, make a concerted effort to turn off your lights when you leave a room, etc.

I'm not sure which county you live. But when I was on maternity leave without pay I got assistance from the county. All you need is a letter from your physician, proof of utilities and rent, and proof that you have a job. My bills were paid for three months, but that did not include my car note. I'll get the information and send you another response. All I remember it was in the Dallas County Health and Human Services bldg. If you don't stay in dallas county I'm sure they can refer you.

DIAL 2-1-1 EXT 1 - 24/7 HELP LINE FOR MEDICAID - they will answer your questions

http://www.hhsc.state.tx.us/Help/index.html

This is the Medicaid site. Possibly they will help you while you are out but you need to do it now.
Ask for WIC - for pregnant mothers and babies. This will help provide food.

You need to pile up cash while you can. Can you work another job? Can you work overtime where you are? Can you cut out things that aren't essential (cable, cell phone, turn the AC up to 78, keep lights off, no eating out, eat beans & rice b/c they are cheap, etc.) Cut all the costs you can and pile up cash for while you aren't working. If you contribute to a 401K, stop contributing for now so you have extra cash. Really think about where you are spending your money and what is actually a need vs. a want. New maternity clothes is a want, not a need. You may have to sacrifice some, but that's what you do when you are a grown up. You have to have a plan to take care of yourself and maintain that. I would encourage you to attend Dave Ramsey's financial peace University so that you will have a plan in place for the future.

A friend of mine got help through TANF (not sure what it stands for but it's gov't aid). You can apply through the medicaid office. She also got help with childcare when she went back to work, I think. I don't know details, but I know it really helped out my friend, since she was put on bedrest at the end of her pregnancy, and ended up being out of work for about 5 months. You should be able to look it up on the state website.

You have done as much as you can. Please consider this income opportunity that lets you work at home, flexible schedule (with your newborn), part or full time hours. It is with Ambit Energy, & it is paying TRIPLE BONUSES this month as Ambit Energy just had it's annual convention. Please watch my 2 websites at www.ejudy.whyambitworks.com as well as www.ejudy.energy526.com to check it out. I'm willing to meet with you to explain how the weekly & monthly residual/commissions are paid. Plus you get free electricity every month - I can tell you how!

Hi S.,
I'm not sure about the resources close to you, but try contacting Network of Community Ministries in Richardson. They can give you some leads. For help with food, try Angel Food Ministries. Even if you don't "do the church thing," look to your local churches. Most of them can find a way to help you, even if it's just a shoulder to lean on. Do you have any family or friends to help you out? Living with them for the next few months will help you get back on your feet. The next couple of months are going to be hard, but you'll get through!!

Sometimes you can call your bank and have them move one car payment to the back of your note. We had our car loan through GMAC, called them and they were able to arrange for us to skip a month and have that payment put on the back of the note. I think we had to pay a percentage of that months payment but it was hardly anything compared to the actual payment. There was no penalty and it did not reflect badly on our credit. It is worth calling and seeing if you can do it for one month, that may help a little. Good luck and congrads!

You might check about temporary disability.

Also depending on your job... and child care situation you may be able to return to work sooner. Or even part time after a couple of weeks. Some day cares require that the babies be a minimal age.. others don't. or if you will have a private sitter. I went back to work after 2 weeks with my second son and about 10 days with my 3rd son. I also got to take my youngest son to work with me for a couple months... depending on your job, this may be an option.

Or perhaps you can ask your employer if you can work overtime and then put the extra money back to help pay for your expenses. Or right now, if you have any extra money (take your lunch to work and cut expenses as much as possible now) and put that money into savings to help with expenses. You need to figure out how much you would need for 6 weeks... and work toward that.

You might also talk to your land lord and find out if for that time ... you could add that months rent onto the next couple months rent (if possible).

You might check with medicaid office and see if there is something through them. Or check with your church... if you don't have a church, now would be a good time to find one... as a single mom you will need all the help you can get.

Hope this helps some.
D.

Do you have disability insurance with your work? Also...what about vacation time? It was REALLY tight with my first child but I saved up all my vacation and sick days and talked with my employer and they paid them out so that covered 3 weeks pay. Then we REALLY cut back. Good luck!

It's called Child Support, and you should hold the children's father responsible for it. Additionally, timely phone calls to all the invested parties to ask for a grace period until you are released to go back to work would be good. Don't wait until they are screaming at you for their money. Be proactive and responsible now. Catholic Charities or one of the other similar entities may be able to hook you up to some temporary resources. Also, try that 211 phone call for resources that's been referred to in the media. County resources. United Way. Food bank assistance.
I would assume that those people/businesses would, long term, want to keep you as a paying client, in the near future, rather than have to go through the trouble, paperwork, and loss of losing, repossessing, and other debt remedies, and finding replacement clients, but a few timely and well-placed phone calls and letters might connect you with the debtors, on a compassionately basis, to get them to give you a bit of breathing room.

I just saved extra money the whole time I was pregnant to pay my bills. It was hard, but it worked out ok! I hope it all works out for you!

State disability. They will pay up to a certain amount of your paycheck. There's also WIC, SNAP (food stamps). Do you have supplemental disability insurance? I'm guessing not, but I would highly recommend getting it in the future (like Aflac) because they pay out additional money and can make up the difference between state disability and what you normally make. And definitely see how family and church can help. Maybe they can help with food, diapers, clothes, and you can use the freed up cash to pay other bills. And even if the father isn't involved, consider asking for child support.

I'm not sure if you would qualify, but you could check with the Department of Human Services to get WIC, Food Stamps and AFDC. Also if you have 401K savings you can withdraw money for health reasons without getting penalized. Beyond that look to family, friends and church to help you out. Be sure to figure out a way to pay them back once your back on your feet. You might also see about getting a roommate to help with the rent costs. Good luck with your new baby!

You may want to contact this group in Dallas and see if they would be interested to help in the short term. Best of luck to you.

http://www.soroptimistdallas.com/

Have you had your baby or are you still expecting? I would suggest saving up as much as you can now. I would also suggest getting rid of any extra expenses that you can do without: cable, cell phone (or reduce services), even consider trading in your car and getting a more affordable one. Also, call your car insurance people and ask if you can go to a higher deductible.

Also, investigate WIC. they will give you certificates for food for yourself and (if you need it) formula for your baby at no cost. If you need a breast pump, they can provide one for you free of charge.

For your other bills, I would contact your providers ahead of time and be honest with them. Tell them you may be in a crunch, and could you pay part of the bill instead of all of it? Whatever you do, don't ignore your bills or fail to contact your providers. They will appreciate your honesty and some payment will be better than nothing and it may buy you some time.

Call 211, which is the United Way referral service. Tell them your situation and see what they can do. You should at a minimum be able to get on WIC, but be prepared to wait and wait at these types of offices. If you are currently working, try to schedule these on your days off.

Do you belong to a church? If so, try them. If not, try The Community Storehouse in Keller to see what they can do. good luck

can you not go back to work earlier -did you have a c-section? Not the ideal situation; however, just an option.

I did not get paid for my maternity leave. I had 2 and a half weeks of vacation time and I used that. Then went back to work part time (under 32 hours a week) after only being out for 3 weeks. And that was after a C-section.

it's not for everyone...but when i weighed the options...starve and lose my dwelling...go back to work and feed the baby...I chose going back to work.

It's not manditory for you to stay home for 6 to 8 weeks. If you request to go back to work for financial reasons earlier.

In saying that...go to some of the churches. try for emergency aid. think about living with relatives.

Good luck to you.

call or talk to in person the companies you mentioned regarding assistance during your difficult time. i believe there's an assistance telephone number listed on the electric bill. unplug all things that you do not use; television/vcr/dvd player, coffee maker, telephone chargers... only use when you need them. you can charge your telephone at work or at your parents/friends...

the bank might be able to refinance your vehicle to make your payments lower.

good luck.

I would try your local welfare office. You could probably get state assistance during your leave if you can prove you are not receiving a paycheck. There, they could probably also hook you up with WIC for some essential groceries and formula (if you'll be using it). Good luck!