Tag: back to work

4 min read

Zoe

Let’s have a catch up

Zoe

December 6, 2021 4:59 pm December 6, 2021

4 min read

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4 min read

I have just finished off my Lucozade and i’m already thinking when it will be ok to have my next coffee. I feel like caffeine is literally my fuel nowadays….

I have just finished off my Lucozade and i’m already thinking when it will be ok to have my next coffee. I feel like caffeine is literally my fuel nowadays.

Hi, how are you? Has it been a while? I think it has?

Work Rant

In September I landed a part time teaching role at a high school. What led me to this decision you ask? After having the dream life of a stay at home mum, I decided to it would be fun to make my life a million times harder and throw myself back into work.

In all seriousness my Computer Science TikTok account was thriving and I forgot how much I not only enjoyed Computer Science but inspiring others too.

Fast forward a couple of months and here we are. One overworked mum of two living off caffeine, deadlines and pressure.

Ok, I know, I’m making it sound like a nightmare and it really isn’t that bad.

For a first time in a long time, I have been able to pay my way…to an extent. The freedom of being able to go and buy makeup when it is empty and not feel guilty about preferring a high end version of foundation is sadly what keeps me going. Over the past couple of years I had been blaming pregnancy and becoming a mum for losing my sense of style when in fact it was my finances (maybe a little bit mumsy syndrome too).

So this catch up has turned into me offloading about my work. Sorry. My final words on that matter is, I am very proud to be showing Molly and Frankie I work but, I was not expecting the work load that comes with it. Think of it as squeezing a full time job into part time hours. But, aren’t all jobs on overtime nowadays?

Private Account

I switched my Instagram account to private in September. Now, don’t get me wrong. I was very sad to do this at the time because I love to blog and turning private felt the same as pressing delete account.

Since I had no other option as I do not fancy having my students at school know all about my life, I have been keeping positive.

I’ll share with you now the good side of a private account:

Follower requests – I can see how many creeps are trying to look at my children.
Validation – I have truly understood what it is like to post what I want when I want without worrying about engagement.
My day is my day – I can do anything without feeling the need to take a photo or press record and sharing it with everyone.
Over consumption no more – I don’t worry about me or the children outfit repeating or needing to take a photo of a new product or recording huge hauls.
New hobbies other than blogging.

Professional Artist

Exploring that last bullet point further, let me talk to you about my new hobby. I started painting just for fun. I encourage you to do it. It is one of the only things I can do where I completely switch off from anything else. My issue is that when I start something, I have to try and be the best at it. I go into obsession mode. With painting, I have accepted that i’m not perfect and my sketch books are just for me. so it is kind of like therapy where I am learning to not care and just have fun.

If you fancy giving it a try, my favourite type of paint is Gouache. You can have it watered down to be like water colours or think like Acrylic.

And that is all I have been up too. If I can think of any life changing moments from the past couple of months that I have forgotten I will tell you on my IG.

Love You

Zoe

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3 min read

Wellness

5 Maternity Rights You Need To Know

Zoe

May 1, 2019 8:00 am May 1, 2019

3 min read

1670 views

6 Comments

3 min read

Do you know the 5 things your Employer is forbidden from doing while you are on Maternity leave? Knowing your own rights whilst planning and going on maternity leave is…

Do you know the 5 things your Employer is forbidden from doing while you are on Maternity leave?

Knowing your own rights whilst planning and going on maternity leave is critical. I?m not saying that employers try to catch you out on purpose for their own benefit. Sometimes they can make a simple, honest mistakes. But, not knowing your legal rights on maternity leave could cost you.

To put that to a close, whether your employer deliberately or unintentionally makes one of these mistakes whilst you are on maternity leave, they are breaking the law.

1. You have to tell your employer as soon as you know you are pregnant or else you will not get full maternity pay.

Wrong. You are only required to inform your employer at least 15 weeks before your due date.

Your employer is allowed to ask for your maternity leave in writing which I believe is acceptable and a good reference for you later down the line. Please do not feel you have to inform work as soon as your pregnancy is confirmed by the doctor.

2. Redundancy

Making you redundant in attempt to avoid maternity pay is wrong. You are entitled to statutory maternity pay if:

You have worked for the same employer for at least 26 weeks by the completion of the 15^th week your before your baby is due.

You were employed for part or all of the qualifying week (15^th week before the baby is due)

You earn at least an average of ?116 in the two months prior to the end of the qualifying week.

3. Give you less than 52 weeks of maternity leave

You are entitled to 52 weeks of maternity leave.

Considering that you are not classed as self-employed or a worker. The length of time you have worked for your employer should not be considered.

The 52 weeks of maternity leave is made up of the 26 weeks of ordinary maternity leave (OML), and 26 weeks of additional maternity leave (AML).

4. Deny you changing your return to work date.

You have to give your employer at least 8 weeks notice. You are allowed to change your return to work date. In some cases this cannot be helped as you may be refused nursery placements or other child care plans could fail leaving you no choice. So it is important to remember to have everything in place 8 weeks before returning.

5.Refuse to provide you with flexible working arrangements

If you opt to return to work at the end of your maternity leave your employer must make effort to accommodate you after you return to work. E.G. You may want to go back on part time hours, or have one day a week where you can work from home.

If returning to work is a struggle, having a chat with your employer may help as they may find hours to accommodate you.

Being Smart

Employers nowadays are aware of the laws and they do comply with them. A lot of employers want you to talk to them about your maternity leave concerns so you can both be in a position of understanding where you both are at.

Unfortunately there are also bad employers that don?t? follow the laws.

Use the information above to protect your rights.

If you need more information on your maternity leave rights, there is personalised guidance published by the GOV.UK website. You can find it here.

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