I’ve been a serial startuper since my early 20s. At 30, I want kids in next 2-4 years. Will asking about future maternity benefits ruin my shot to work for a small early stage startup?
5 answers from the community
Yes (sad but true). Don't bring it up until it's actually an issue.
Do you think people won't hire me because I'm a woman who looks somewhere between 25 and 35, assuming I will have kids soon?
That seems unlikely, at least in the US. Asking about maternity benefits immediately sets the wrong tone, though.
First question to ask yourself: if you've been a serial entrepreneur, would you even be able to have a true maternity leave where you do no work for X number of months? If you know that you can't sit still anyways, then its probably a non issue.
Second question is, even if you take maternity leave, could you work out a way to work from home? Maybe its not full hours, but close to full... could you find a way to make it work?
If the second question is yes, and you know you bring value to the team, then I would say be upfront and say "hey guys, i am planning a kid soon enough, but here is why it wont be a problem because I've got it all thought out how I can continue to bring value to the firm...".
good luck
If the dudebros who founded the company expected that they'd never have to offer paid maternity leave, they aren't running a company, they're running a frat house.