Maternity Leave Stipends?

Does anyone know the past policy about PAID maternity leave for grad students?

When I was a grad student in a predominantly US citizen, US program, very few
(none?) of my female classmates got pregnant or needed maternity leave.
When I was a post-doc in a department that was over 70% foreign grad
students and post-docs, the babies were dropping like flies. I never asked at
the time whether the students (or post-docs) continued to receive their
stipends when they took time off from the lab (nasty stuff that can harm a
fetus in the first trimester) and then left the program completely for several
weeks just before and after childbirth.

Is it a personal choice of the PI to continue to pay during such leave? Does
the PI have the authority to pay out NIH, NSF or other funds for work not
done? Do (did) most departments pay for such leaves?

What is the current situation?

Have a Happy New Year!

.

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