Most California moms assume 12 weeks. Many qualify for more.
If you've been told, or just assumed, that maternity leave means 12 weeks, you may be looking at only one law. This free workshop shows you how California's programs stack together, so you know what you may actually qualify for.
More paid weeks at home with your baby than you thought you could get, and none of that feeling that you left time on the table when you went back to work.
Hosted by Diane Gatza, P.E., CLMSOwner + Founder, California Maternity Leave Consulting 6,000+families served since 2022
5 Critical Steps to Maximize Your Maternity Leave
Free ยท Under an hour ยท No prep needed. Leave with your next steps the same day.
Who this workshop is for:
- You live in California
- You work full- or part-time for an employer (W-2, not self-employed)
- You're an expecting mom, dad, partner, adoptive or intended parent
- Any employer: private, State of California, public education, city, county, healthcare and more*
*Not for federal employees. Federal jobs have a different leave and benefit structure, so this workshop doesn't apply.
A few of the companies where the women I have worked with work:
Moms who found out it wasn't just 12 weeks
Almost double the time off, and more pay.
โโฆreceived almost double the time off as I was previously approved for and more pay!โ
Mahreen D.Part-time work for full-time pay.
โI was able to get 4.5 months paid with another month @ part time work with full pay!โ
Angela L.Results vary based on your employer, eligibility, income and timing.
โI figured maternity leave was 12 weeks, like everyone says.โ
The 12-week myth12 weeks is one law. California has several.
"12 weeks" usually comes from one leave law: bonding time under FMLA or California's CFRA.
But in California, PDL is its own, separate leave protection, and State programs like SDI and Paid Family Leave can pay you while you're out. For eligible employees, those pieces can add up to far more than 12 weeks.
Nobody hands you this map. The workshop does.
12 weeks vs. what can stack
Job-protected leave for an eligible California employee
PDL covers the time off your care provider certifies, up to four months. CFRA bonding leave is separate. Eligibility rules apply. Pay comes from separate programs like SDI and Paid Family Leave.
Go beyond 12 weeks
Here's what the free workshop gives you to do it. No prep, no paperwork today, no need to know the acronyms. Just pick a session and show up.
- 1
HR secrets and negotiation tactics
What HR doesn't usually volunteer, and how to ask for the time and pay you're eligible for with confidence.
- 2
How to use every right you have
The State, federal and employer benefits you may qualify for, and how PDL, CFRA, SDI and PFL stack together for more paid time at home.
- 3
When and how to share your plan
The recommended timing for telling your employer, how to frame the conversation, and what to have figured out first.
- 4
How to protect yourself during the process
The common mistakes that cost moms time and pay, and how to protect your leave, your pay and your position along the way.
- BONUS
Your paperwork filing checklist
Every key filing date in one place, so you don't miss a claim deadline while you're home with a newborn.
The goal: more weeks home with your baby, more pay while you're there, and a plan built on the full picture.
Home for the first smile, the first roll, the first foods. Rocking your baby to sleep for naps yourself. Your savings still there for the house or the first-birthday trip. And going back to work when you're ready, knowing you got every week and every dollar you were eligible for.
I'm Diane Gatza, P.E.
I'm an engineer who turned my own experience with California's maternity leave system into a company that has helped 6,000+ women and families. Maternity leave is the only thing we do.
Most moms I meet thought 12 weeks was the whole story. It usually isn't.
