Paid Leave Should Value All Care and All Families
Amber Halbert
I worked in the service industry for many years. Five years ago when my son was born, I had a C-section and was allowed 6 weeks to heal. The time was unpaid. I had some complications but work put a lot of pressure on me. They told me they really needed me back after 5 weeks and could only guarantee me I would have a job, but not necessarily a shift. I needed the pay and went back even though I wasn't yet healed and missed the bonding time both my son and I needed from breast feeding. When my son was 4 months old, I woke up with a fever so high I had blisters on my face.