Are You Entitled to Maternity Leave at Starbucks?

If you work at Starbucks and you're planning to have a baby, you may be eligible for Starbucks maternity leave. Starbucks extended its parental leave program in March 2017; it now covers retail, corporate, part-time, and full-time employees. Additionally, both men and women are now eligible for Starbucks parental leave.

However, the extent of leave for which you may be eligible varies depending on your job and whether you are "benefits-eligible". It may be difficult to figure out exactly how much maternity leave you can take as a Starbucks employee and navigate the MySedgwick system in which you apply for leave.

This is where DoNotPay can step in and help you apply for maternity leave. We’ll you a few simple questions and apply to the program for you, or contact your employer. Using DoNotPay can simplify your life and help you to get back to preparing for your baby.

What Is “Benefits-Eligibility” at Starbucks?

Certain benefits of working at Starbucks are available right away. Others, such as parental leave, require you to be "benefits-eligible".

Eligibility Requirements

• Full-time workers in the US mainland become benefits-eligible after 60 days of employment at Starbucks.
• Shift supervisors, operation leads, shift managers, kitchen bakers, mixologists, savory and pastry checks, assemblers, and Princi porters are considered full-time for benefits eligibility.
• Part-time workers in the US mainland become benefits-eligible when they've worked at least 240 hours over three months. If you've taken an approved leave of absence during this time, those leave hours can count towards a total of 240 hours.
• Hourly retail employees working at Starbucks in Hawaii become benefits-eligible after working at least 80 hours in 4 weeks. Any approved leave hours can count towards those 80 hours.
• Retail salaried employees and non-retail hourly employees in Hawaii become benefits-eligible on the first day of the month right after they are hired.

So if you fulfill any of the above conditions, then you are eligible for Starbucks maternity leave.

How Do You Stay Eligible for Maternity Leave at Starbucks?

Merely becoming benefits-eligible is not enough to get maternity leave at Starbucks. You must continue to fulfill certain conditions.

• On the US mainland, you remain benefits-eligible when you work 520 total hours during every 6-month period, from January 6 to July 6 and from July 6 to January 6 of the next year.
• In Hawaii, you remain benefits-eligible when you work 80 hours every month.

What Are Your Maternity Leave Options at Starbucks?

How much maternity leave you get at Starbucks depends on what position you hold. Here's what you need to keep in mind:

1. If you are benefits-eligible and you are a birth mother and you work at a Starbucks store or office at least 20 hours a week, you can get six weeks of fully-paid maternity leave.
2. If you are benefits-eligible and you work at a Starbucks store and you adopt a child, you can get six weeks of fully-paid maternity leave.
3. If you are benefits-eligible and you work at a Starbucks store at least part-time and you're having a biological child/adopting a child/fostering a child, you can get six weeks of paid time off without fulfilling FMLA requirements. You can also get 12 weeks of unpaid leave.
4. If you are a non-store (corporate) employee of Starbucks and you are benefits-eligible and you have a biological child/adopt a child/foster a child, you get 12 weeks of paid time off for maternity leave.
5. In order to apply for maternity leave as a Starbucks employee, you can go to the MySedgwick portal and log in or create a new account. You can also call the 800 number provided on the Starbucks website.

Requesting Maternity Leave at Starbucks via DoNotPay

As you see, figuring out your eligibility for maternity leave at Starbucks can be complicated. First, you need to figure out whether you are benefits-eligible. Then, you need to look over all the options and figure out how many weeks of leave you are eligible for. Plus, the rules vary from the US mainland to Hawaii.

Overall, requesting maternity leave can get pretty complicated. Once you figure out how much you are eligible for, you must navigate the MySedgwick portal to actually request leave. You may find it simpler to use DoNotPay. Just answer a few questions and let the product do the rest.

If you want to request parental leave but don't know where to start, DoNotPay has you covered in 6 easy steps:

1. Tell us which state you work in (if you work in CA, NY, NJ, MA, WA, or DC, your state has a paid family leave program).

2. Choose whether you want us to apply to the program for you or contact your employer with your leave request. If you want to apply for the program, we will walk you through the questions on the form and mail the application form for you.

3. If you want us to contact your employer, enter your leave details, including the starting date, number of weeks of leave, and how many weeks of paid leave you are requesting (for example, you may take a 12 week leave, but only request 8 weeks of paid leave to make the request reasonable).

4. Indicate whether you are the birth parent or not (birth parents have a few additional protections).

5. Enter the name of your company and the person to address this request to.

6. Select whether you want us to email the request to your employer on your behalf.

Using DoNotPay for Other Types of Parental Leave

If you find that you are not yet benefits-eligible at Starbucks, but you still need to apply for maternity leave, you can opt to apply via FMLA (the Family and Medical Leave Act). This act ensures that anyone who needs maternity leave gets it, although it might turn out to be unpaid.

DoNotPay can also help you apply for FMLA maternity leave. Here are a few of your options:

• Learn about FMLA leave.
• Learn how to apply for FMLA leave.
• Write an FMLA request letter.
• Learn about FMLA forms.

You can also check out DoNotPay’s state guides for more information:

Overall, you'll find that DoNotPay greatly simplifies your life, especially when it comes to applying for maternity leave. No matter which state you live in and which company you work for, DoNotPay can help you figure out your maternity leave options. So you’ll have all the time you need to bond with your baby. Try it today!