- Pregnancy
- Baby & Toddler
- Parents
- Getting Pregnant
- Baby Names
- Product Reviews
-
Registry
- Community
-
More
Want a personalized experience?
Download the free app
Babies: 3 - 6 Months
Working moms with baby in day care- question
How is your work handling time you have to take off to care for your LO?
How do you divy up the days home when LO is sick between you and your DH/FI/BF?
My place of employment is giving me a real hard time for days I have to spend at home with LO because he is ill. My LO is currently home with my mom (who had to take a vacation day so I wouldn't get written up at work) with a fever (he has had a fever off and on since Tuesday night). My husband has been away on a business trip since Monday so I have had to go at this alone and my employer has been anything BUT understanding.
I am extremely stressed and worried about my child and my job. I never had attendance issues before LO. It is just this day care sickness the first few months, they just don't understand. I am so frustrated, stressed and upset.
Little E born 12.10.09
Little A born 04.19.12
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Working moms with baby in day care- question
i am so sorry about that! You dont get sick days? or Vacation days? How can they not understand that you have to stay home with you sick baby! Do they have kids? My supervisor and co workers are really understanding, they all have children. I had to take B to the Pedi's office 4 times in one week and was at least an hour or 2 late everyday because of of it. I've never had to stay home with B but I'm sure I'll be the one doing it. I work for the State and get much more paid time off and sick/family sick leave than H does. So financially, it makes sense for me to stay home.
I'm soooo sorry your work is giving you a hard time. My LO has not been sick yet :::knock on wood::: but I have only been back to work for 1 week.
My plan for when she does get sick is to use my sick and/or vacation days. I have a good amount saved up and I get new ones each August.
My H's job is WAAAY more demanding and crazy than mine. If it is a busy time of year for him, I will stay home with LO. If it is not a crazy time for him, we will both split the day and each work a half day. Or if it looks like LO will be sick for a few days, I will stay home one day and he will stay home the next.
I am very lucky because I work in an office with 3 other women and my boss just had her first baby at the begining of April and my other co-worker is having a c-section for her first baby next Tuesday. We are all new moms so my boss is obviously very understanding!
I am an exempt level employee so I have quite a bit of flexibility with my schedule and have a laptop so I can work from home. DH does not have flexibility in his job so I usually take off or one of our parents watch her.
That being said I understand your situation. Unfortunately the company has the right to enforce whatever attendance policy they have in place regardless of the reason you are out. FMLA might be an option for you if your employer qualifes. You can take intermittant FMLA if LO has a chronic condition that needs sporadic time off or a continuous leave (over 3 days) when LO is very sick. These absences would be job protected by federal law. I suggest visiting with your HR rep about these options.
Has your LO seen a doctor for the fever?
Thankfully I work for a pretty flexible company. DS's sitter was sick for a week, so DH & I had to divide up our time with DS. I work from home, so I kept DS home most of the time, but I felt so bad that I was really only working a half day since I did need to tend to DS. DH is willing to take time off to watch DS if needed, but when this happened, DH had just started a new job.
After not being super productive for a few days, I went to my mom's ( a few hours away) so we could split watching DS (she can work from home as needed), and that was great.
The biggest lesson we learned was that we need to have backup childcare. So, we now have a few sitter's available in case it's not convenient for DH or I to be off.
We were at the Pedi's Tuesday for his physical and Immunizations. However he had a low grade fever so he did not get his shots. When we got home he was vomiting and had diarrhea and a temp of 101. I have been on the phone with the Pedi's office for the past couple of days. They want me to bring him in today if his fever comes back.
My bosses all have children, but they are older. I believe their wives stayed home and took care of them, so they don't really understand. This is also a large company so all they are interested in is the bottom line.
oh and the sick/vacation time- I have to accrue it and you only accumulate a total of 40hours sick time a year with no rollover into the next year. I have non-existant sick time and vacation because Maternity Leave drained me of all of that, so I am trying to accrue time.
So I have been taking unpaid days off (I am hourly obvs.)
I'm sorry to hear your employer is being douchetastic.
I haven't had to take any time off yet for S but I have been sick myself. And I just take the time off unpaid. If they want to fire me bc they couldn't pay for maternity leave and made me eat up all my paid time off, that's their prerogative I guess. My family and my health come first; I'm not doing rocket science or changing the world here after all.
click the pic (blog)
DD hasn't had to stay home from daycare yet, but if she had to, I would be the one to stay home with her. DH doesn't get paid time off. I'm sorry your employer is giving you a hard time.