12 Weeks Pregnant

Fatherhood and Work

It is important to think about how the birth of your child might affect your presence at work (and vice versa). Do you work long hours now? Do you expect that to continue? What kind of relationship do you have with your boss? Does your employer encourage, or at least put up with, coworkers who have children and want to eat dinner with them every night? How has your employer treated other fathers and mothers?

These are all good things to consider as you plan to approach your boss to tell him or her that your partner is pregnant. Since nobody can tell by your physical appearance that you'll be a father soon, you have some flexibility as to when to break the news to your employer and coworkers. Yet that doesn't mean you should wait until the last minute either; you'll need to check on paternity leave and arrange for someone to assume your work duties in your absence—and you don't want to alienate coworkers with whom you're close. They'll be excited to hear your good news!

Some men use the time before Baby arrives to work longer hours and show they are still committed to their companies. Others begin pulling back on those late nights at the office and start transitioning to a more family-friendly schedule. It isn't too early to think about what will be best for you and your employer.

As a father-to-be and an employee, it is a good time to think about how you'll balance one of the most challenging equations of fatherhood: your work load and your home life.