You’re staring at a positive pregnancy test and, after the initial shock or joy fades, the logistics hit. Hard. When can you actually stop working? It’s a question that feels like it should have a simple, universal answer, but in the United States, it’s a messy patchwork of federal law, state-specific wins, and whatever your boss feels like offering.
Honestly, the timing is everything.
Most people assume there is a "standard" date, like 36 or 38 weeks. There isn't. Determining when you can take maternity leave depends entirely on whether you are prioritizing your physical health, your paycheck, or the maximum amount of time you get to spend with the baby once they actually arrive.
The FMLA Baseline and the 1,250-Hour Hurdle
Let's talk about the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). It's the "big" law, but it’s kind of a blunt instrument. It gives you 12 weeks of unpaid leave. That’s it. No money, just the guarantee that your job (or an equivalent one) will be there when you get back.
But there is a catch. You can’t just start it whenever you want without a medical reason unless you’re okay with those 12 weeks running out while you’re still pregnant.
To qualify, you must have worked for your employer for at least 12 months and logged 1,250 hours in the past year. If you hit those marks, you can technically start your leave as soon as your "incapacity" begins. If your doctor says your pregnancy makes it impossible to work at 34 weeks, FMLA kicks in then. But if you're feeling fine and just want to prep the nursery? Taking leave early means you’re eating into the time you’ll have after the birth.
Most women I talk to try to work right up until the first contraction. It’s exhausting. It’s often miserable. But when you only have 12 weeks total, every day spent working at 39 weeks is another day you get to stay home with a three-month-old later.
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When Your State Is Better Than the Feds
If you live in California, New Jersey, or Rhode Island, you’re playing a different game. These states (and a growing list of others like Washington and Massachusetts) have state-mandated paid leave.
In California, for instance, the Pregnancy Disability Leave (PDL) law is a game-changer. It basically assumes you are "disabled" by pregnancy four weeks before your due date. You don't have to prove you're sick. You just have to be pregnant. This allows you to stop working at 36 weeks without touching your "baby bonding" time.
It's a luxury that residents in 40 other states simply don't have.
If you are in a state with no paid leave, you are likely looking at Short-Term Disability (STD) insurance. This is usually a private policy through your job. Most of these policies won't pay out until you actually give birth, or until a doctor certifies that you have a complication like preeclampsia or extreme pelvic pain that prevents you from doing your job.
The "Work Until You Pop" Strategy
There is a certain grit in the American workforce regarding pregnancy. I’ve seen women answering emails between contractions in the hospital parking lot. It’s wild.
Why do we do this? Because the math is brutal.
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If you take leave at 38 weeks and the baby is a week late, you’ve used three weeks of your 12-week FMLA allotment before the baby even takes a breath. Now you only have nine weeks left. If you’re lucky enough to have a job that offers 16 or 20 weeks of fully paid leave—which is becoming more common in the tech and finance sectors—you have more breathing room. Companies like Netflix or Adobe have set a high bar here, but they are the outliers, not the rule.
Medical Necessity vs. Personal Choice
Sometimes the decision of when you can take maternity leave isn't yours to make.
If your "geriatric pregnancy" (a term I personally loathe but doctors love) turns high-risk, or if you end up on bed rest, your leave starts the moment you stop working. This is where the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), which went into effect in 2023, becomes your best friend.
The PWFA requires employers to provide "reasonable accommodations" for pregnancy-related conditions. This might mean you don't have to start your full leave yet; maybe you just need to work from home, or have a stool to sit on, or take more breaks. It's a way to delay the official start of your leave so you can save those precious weeks for the postpartum period.
Navigating the "Vibes" of Your Workplace
Let's be real: there is the law, and then there is the culture of your office.
Even if the law says you can leave at 36 weeks, many women feel an immense pressure to stay. They worry about their promotion cycle or their "reliability" in the eyes of a manager who hasn't updated their worldview since 1985.
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My advice? Stop asking for permission and start stating your plan.
By week 32, you should have a firm date in mind. Tell your boss: "My last day in the office will be [Date], assuming the baby doesn't have other plans." This shifts the power dynamic. It shows you’re organized. It gives them a deadline to get the "handover" documents finished.
Practical Steps to Nailing Your Exit Date
Planning this isn't just about picking a day on a calendar. You have to be a bit of a detective.
- Audit your HR portal. Don't just trust what your coworkers say. Policies change. Download the latest PDF of the employee handbook and look for "Short-Term Disability" and "Parental Leave."
- Talk to your OB-GYN early. Ask them at what point they typically support a medical leave of absence. Some doctors are very conservative; others will write you a note at 37 weeks if you just tell them you can't stand the swelling anymore.
- Check your "Waiting Period." Many disability policies have a one-week "elimination period" where you don't get paid. If you stop working on a Friday and give birth on a Monday, that first week might be totally unpaid unless you use PTO.
- Save your sick days. If you have 10 days of accrued sick leave, that’s two weeks of "pre-leave" you can take at 38 weeks without even touching your FMLA or disability.
- The "Slow Fade." If your job allows, try to transition to 100% remote work starting at 37 weeks. It’s a lot easier to work when you can wear pajamas and keep your feet elevated.
The "right" time is a myth. You're balancing your physical limits against a financial reality. If you can afford it, leaving at 38 weeks gives you a moment to breathe, to sleep (as much as you can), and to mentally shift gears. If you can't, then you join the ranks of the "Friday workers" who give birth on Saturday.
Neither way is wrong. It's just about knowing exactly what your specific situation—your state, your company, and your body—will actually allow.
Your Immediate Action Plan
Start by calculating your "Protected Date." If you started your job more than a year ago, mark 12 weeks on your calendar starting from your due date. Then, look at your bank account. If you stopped getting a paycheck today, how many weeks could you survive? The gap between those two numbers is your "Flex Zone." Use it wisely. Reach out to your HR representative via email—get everything in writing—to confirm your eligibility for FMLA and any company-sponsored pay. Do this before you hit the third trimester so you aren't trying to decode legal jargon while dealing with "pregnancy brain."
The goal is to leave on your own terms, not because you collapsed at your desk.