California’s teachers need good parental leave policies.
By Stephanie Hammerman
I started my professional career working in operations at Morgan Stanley and had both my sons while I worked there. I had excellent benefits which included a diversified choice of healthcare providers, two weeks sick pay, and three months paid maternity leave, not to mention the amazing retirement benefits, with an employer match. These generous benefits allowed me to stay home for three months with each of my sons, bonding with them, and creating lasting memories. I remember late nights, rocking and nursing my children, followed by long afternoons at the park with my mommy and me groups. In the afternoon we walked through Huntington Children’s Garden and picnicked on the lawn. I remember experiencing a shift in purpose that gave me the ability to maintain my love of career and cherish something else, someone else. I did not feel as if I needed to rush back to my job; rather, I was able to nurture a relationship with my sons. It was fabulous.
Eventually, I decided to change careers and become a teacher. Most teachers are women, and many of my colleagues have had their children while teaching. It shocked me to learn how different, and how much worse, maternity leave policies are in education when compared to the private sector. One of my friends, Mrs. Johnson, had 3 children while in the classroom. She was lucky enough to plan her first pregnancy and give birth during the summer break. When she needed extra time to bond with her son, she had to use six weeks of her sick pay, leaving her with no time to be out if she or her son became sick. This cycle continued with her two other children. Her sick pay was exhausted and her husband, who is also a teacher at the same school, would have to use his sick time instead. When I asked Mrs. Johnson about the long term effects of the lack of maternity leave benefits, she hung her head. “I’ve missed so many moments with my kids,” she said.
In California, teachers taking maternity leave must first exhaust all available sick leave. Then they are entitled to differential pay for up to 12 weeks. This means that the woman with a newborn is paying for a substitute teacher; she then receives the difference between her regular salary and the amount paid to that substitute. Not only that, this earned time remains a gap and is not accumulated, counted, or added as service hours toward her retirement. According to the analysis of the bill, “…while over 70% of CalSTRS membership is female, those female members on average receive lower benefits at retirement than male members.” The analysis emphasizes that “If pregnancy leave benefits improved, such that female members would no longer have to exhaust their sick leave, this change could help alleviate the inequity in service credit between female and male members at retirement.”
Many educators I know struggle to find a balance between having a job they love and having a baby because of this lack of paid maternity leave. Colleagues I’ve had have tried giving birth to their baby during the summer break. Needless to say, that is not always possible. Some schools have lost teachers who have chosen not to return to their classroom after they’ve given birth because of the lack of maternity leave and lack of support.
The good news is that in December 2024, Assemblymember Aguiar-Curry introduced Assembly Bill 65 which will require K-12 public schools and community college districts to provide up to 14 weeks of paid leave for employees experiencing pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. This bill mandates that paid leave begin before or continue after childbirth, and prevents a paid leave of absence for any of these reasons from being deducted from other leaves of absence available to the employee. It also requires employers to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes this leave. This legislation has the backing of the California Teachers Association (CTA), California Retirement Teachers Association (CalSTRS), and Fiona Ma, California State Treasurer (sponsor), and includes many more supporters. If enacted, it would put an end to teachers having to choose between being with their baby and being with their students. It would also put an end to teachers losing out on having their time with their child counted toward retirement.
Most importantly, maternity leave will become part of a certificated teachers benefit package. It will be a given just like it was for me early in my career. Mr. Rogers said, “Anyone that does anything to help a child is a hero to me.” It’s time our parental leave policies are brought up to date to support teachers and ultimately all our students.
Stephanie Hammerman teaches functional English, consumer finance, and a transition class at Birmingham Community Charter High School in Lake Balboa, California. She is a 2024–25 Teach Plus California Policy Fellow.
