How to announce your pregnancy to your employer?

Announcing your pregnancy to your employer is an ordeal dreaded by all expectant mothers . Don't rush to your boss's office two days after the pregnancy test, you have plenty of time. The labor code simply specifies that you must inform your employer (in writing or verbally) before going on maternity leave, without setting a specific deadline. However, it is preferable to be magnanimous and inform them well in advance so that they can organize themselves and plan your replacement. Doctors generally advise waiting until twelve weeks of pregnancy , at which point the many risks of miscarriage have mostly disappeared.

To get through this first stage with flying colours, keep your secret (it's better for your boss to find out about it yourself than through rumour...), display a reassuring smile and be unfailingly calm. To announce your pregnancy, choose a day when he (or she) seems relaxed and in a good mood and go for it. Confident. It's your life and you wanted this baby. So you have no reason to feel guilty. Even if you've only recently been hired. Besides, by integrating a young woman into their team, an employer knows what to expect.

"I'm expecting a baby" will do the trick. Don't start endless explanations or justifications. You don't have to apologize ... for your happiness. Nor promise him that this pregnancy won't change anything. Not only can you not know this in advance, but above all it's false: you will inevitably be more tired and less available in your head. There's no need to specify it, he suspects it. Let him know that you will be absent once a month for medical monitoring of your pregnancy and that you will also go to childbirth preparation classes. As soon as possible, give him your departure and return dates from maternity leave. If you plan to take parental leave or additional leave, let him know as well.

Don't worry. Few people are happy about the pregnancy of one of their employees, especially among craftsmen and shopkeepers where it poses organizational problems. But most of them get over it very quickly. Unfortunately, not all of them. Because some are already anticipating this pregnancy and the years to come. Not only will the model employee that you were be absent for several weeks, but also, when you return, you will no longer be as available for the company. Already, they imagine the nights cut short by the little one's crying or rhinopharyngitis, the problems with the nanny, etc. For your employer, these are so many days during which he will have to do without you. In fact, your pregnancy simply reminds him that you have a private life. For some, it is unbearable. In these times, companies are wary of employees who feel less invested, if only because they have a family life.

Once your boss knows, you can tell your colleagues , most of whom will congratulate you. As for the others, the grumpy ones, forget them or, better yet, run away from them: don't let anyone spoil your fun. Besides, tell yourself that if some people react this way, it's probably because they're jealous and would like to be in your place. A pregnant woman arouses envy and therefore aggression. There are men who will never have children, some women who would have liked to have more and who know that it's too late, those who have difficulty getting pregnant ... When the atmosphere is one of sarcasm, irony or even indifference, it's not always easy to resist the pressure. Because the pregnant woman experiences a real upheaval in her body and mind that weakens her and makes her more susceptible. Pregnancy also requires a lot of availability, calm and a refocusing on oneself which are unwelcome in a world where we always have to do more, always faster.