As an Expat, I was concerned when I moved to Switzerland and understood more about Maternity leave, even though the country does not have bad conditions compared with several other countries.
However, as a “new mom”, I wanted to be sure to have everything in place and that my baby will be taken good care of… at the same time, I love working and I did not want to become a stay at home mom. It is not easy, to find the balance, to deal with the guilt of wanting to return to work but most importantly, was not easy to find the appropriate staff to take care of my baby.
The law says that maternity leave in Switzerland varies depending on the industry. But the law itself indicates that maternity leave should be at least 98 days (or 14 weeks), from the day it starts. Both full-time and part-time employees are entitled to maternity leave. Those women who return to work earlier lose their entitlement to compensation.
The law also says that mothers are paid 80% of their wages in the form of a daily allowance.
And then it hit me: 98 days is a very short time, they are still newborns and we are supposed to leave them!
That is why I started my research and contacted Good-People.
First of all, I was amazed by the quality of their personal service. They came to my house and took a look around asking me the way that I liked things to be done in my home, they met me while I was -very- pregnant and listened to me… They took the time to get to know ME, not just as another customer but as a mom to be who was by herself in a new country!
After that initial meeting, they started sharing CVs and videos of some potential candidates that could help with my baby after I returned to my corporate role. One more time, I was impressed by their scrutiny and attention to detail… They provided me with candidates that I could not find at any other place.
After a little while, I made my mind up and decided to hire Ana. Ana joined our family a couple of weeks before I gave birth and has been with my daughter -Manuela- ever since she was born. She is the reason why I was able to, first of all, enjoy my maternity leave and secondly, -and maybe even more important-, she is the reason I could return to work with a peace of mind. The three of us (the baby, Ana and myself) took the time to get to know each other, adapt and trust each other. This could not have happened without Good-People!
I remembered when they told me that I was not a bad mom because I worked and I am also not a bad worker because I am a mom. But trust me, for many months it didn’t feel this way!
Manuela was born in October. Ana has been with us since the last weeks of September and I returned to work in January. I am extremely grateful to Good-People and with Ana, but most importantly, I am thankful that I followed my guts and did what I thought was best for me and my baby.
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