answer:With my employer (government), you’re not “given” time off. You take your own sick time and vacation time. It’s paid, yes, but it’s your time. You have a baby, you’re saving up your sick time and vacation time. You’re not taking a vacation that year, or if you do, it’s less paid time off after the baby. There is a plan where you get half pay for a certain amount of time, based upon your length of employment. When I had my daughter, end of May a few years ago, I took off the week before she was born, then stayed home till the end of the year (7 months). 3 months were with full pay – vacation and sick time. Two months were at half pay, based upon the plan my employer has that I just described above. Two months were without any pay at all. Fortunately I could afford to do that. I would not have minded staying out longer at no pay, but with the employer, once the new year came, I’d be using up my own vacation again, and the option to go without pay was no longer. As far as burdening my coworkers with my work, I don’t think people should go their whole lives without having children just due to wanting to shoulder their work load at work. My coworkers who have children all say “Family first.”