Susan Wojcicki pregnant with baby number five, could get 22 weeks maternity leave as YouTube CEO

SUSAN Wojcicki, is pregnant with baby number five, but what’s really got people talking is whether she will take advantage of Google’s 22 week paid parental scheme.

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THE CEO of YouTube, Susan Wojcicki, is pregnant with baby number five.

The 46-year-old, who took on the top job at YouTube in February, is no stranger to juggling the mum and businesswoman hats simultaneously — she was pregnant with her first child when she joined Google in 1998, a decision which today Wojcicki says was one of the best she could have made.

“Don’t overplan your life. Joining Google when I was four months pregnant was a bit of a leap, but sometimes you have to do the right thing for you right now,” she told Glamour magazine shortly after deciding to move to YouTube, which Google purchased under her leadership in 2006 for $US1.65 billion.

But what’s really got people talking is whether Wojcicki will take advantage of Google’s paid parental scheme.

Under the scheme, Wojcicki is entitled to 22 weeks of paid parental leave, which includes a well-publicised 12 weeks of ‘baby bonding’ time that fathers are also entitled to.

Susan Wojcicki with husband Dennis Troper.

In Australia, new mothers are entitled to up to 18 weeks of paid parental leave, and new dads are entitled to two weeks paid leave.

While Wojcicki is yet to comment on how much leave she’ll take, what is well known is her attitude to family. Not only was she the first person within the Google company to have a baby, she helped to design Google’s in-house daycare centre, and makes sure she’s home by 6pm each night for dinner.

Her advice to working women wondering when to start a family is: “Don’t forget that it gets easier! Having a child is a big life change, but the really hectic period is relatively short. You can get through it.”

Indeed.