Senator: Army moms need more maternity leave

[unhappycamper]

Senator: Army moms need more maternity leave
By William H. McMichael - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Feb 22, 2008 5:49:58 EST

Memo to Defense Secretary Robert Gates: Fix the disparity in post-birth maternity leave for military mothers in the four services and ensure that the new policy puts mothers and infants first.

That’s the gist of a letter sent to Gates on Tuesday by Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., who pointed out that each service has a different post-birth deferment-from-deployment policy. The Army, she said, gives mothers just four months to stay at home with their newborns. And, she noted, it has the longest war zone deployments, currently 15 months.

According to a news release that accompanied the letter, the Marine Corps gives new moms a six-month exemption from deployment — Marines typically deploy for seven months at a time — while the Navy, whose sailors generally deploy for six months at a time, grants 12 to new moms. The Air Force exemption was not immediately available.

McCaskill noted that Maj. Gen. Gayle Pollock, former acting Army surgeon general, advised Army leaders that maternity deferments should last at least eight months and that 12 would be ideal.

McCaskill said Pollock is on the right track. “While the strain of meeting manpower demands for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are clearly tremendous,” McCaskill said, “maintenance of a policy that undervalues the health of a newborn infant is unacceptable.”


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/02/military_maternityleave_080221w/

[FalconsRule]

1. Time to discharge

them from the service if they have a kid and can not deploy. Then they get all the maternity leave they need.

[NYVet]

2. Gotta agree with Falcon

If you are unable to fulfill your commitment to the military, thank you for your service and goodbye.

Life has always been about choices and consequences. Unable to deploy due to pregnancy? IMO, you get an honorable discharge, access to benefits you have earned up to that point (GI Bill, VA loans, etc) and then live your life outside.