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MNHQ

Bring Your Child To Work Day - yes or no?

210 replies

MumsnetJobsTeam · 04/12/2019 11:30

Many companies have Bring Your Child To Work Day, where parents can show their children where they work and give them some experience of the workplace.

On one hand, these days can be an opportunity for children to learn, as well as find out more about their parents' lives. They can also make parents feel more supported in the workplace as their children are positively acknowledged and encouraged.

However, some say Bring Your Child To Work Day could be challenging for those who have lost a child, or are struggling to conceive. There are also some who think the practice isn't worth the potential drop in productivity - particularly for childless colleagues who are distracted, whether they like it or not.

We'd like to get your thoughts on Bring Your Child To Work Days. Are they a fun, useful opportunity, or something that should be approached with caution? And if so, what could companies do instead?

OP posts:
ForalltheSaints · 07/12/2019 07:37

I think the year 11 or 12 work experience day or week is better. Has a focus, tasks etc and can benefit them.

tinseltitsandlittlegits · 07/12/2019 07:41

My partners boss should allow this just to get experience of disabilities 🤔.
Our son would definitely open his eyes and then just maybe mr boss might understand that he employs humans who all have different challenges in their daily lives and sometimes flexibility is needed for your staff.

Tonii1985 · 07/12/2019 07:45

I think it's a great idea and the connection between work and family is really important to some people (myself included). I love that when I tell my daughter I'm going to work she understands where that is, has happy associations with it and can visualise it.

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Families
hoorayforharoldlloyd · 07/12/2019 07:56

We do it - it has to be on the same one day so something can be organised together such as a talk on the company by HR, a set piece of work, some shadowing, interviewing another member of staff.

Losing a child or trouble conceiving is not relevant here as the children are aged 11 to 18.

However, work experience for children of staff is a bug bear for me as it is part of the whole glass floor effect and makes it hard for young people without parents in work or a range of work to get a placement. At our work place, we organise the work experience offer and while staff can use them be for their child, they have to offer a placement for a general applicant too.

EmpressLesbianInChair · 07/12/2019 08:47

Seems a bit crazy to have all on the same day.

At least you get all the disruption over with in one go though?

Mangoandbroccoli · 07/12/2019 09:02

As a number of others have said, there are pros and cons to this day, but not doing so to avoid upsetting childless colleagues seems a bizarre reason (and I say this as someone whose recently been through the wringer with trying to conceive).

I attended two of these days growing up and it wasn't suitable to go to my dad's place of work on either occasion, so my parents arranged for me to join someone else instead. I went to a small independent shop in primary school and a television production company in secondary school. Both hugely different experiences that taught me a lot and I'm really glad I had the opportunity to do this. Not being limited to your parents' place of work also helps get around the inequality that a PP suggested. I now have a career that most people consider 'exciting' and have been asked a number of times by friends if I can take their child on an appropriate day and am always happy to do so.

user1494050295 · 07/12/2019 10:32

I take my daughter to work but not when I am working. I work for a central London university and talk to her about the people there the type of environment it is and point out female colleagues in academia to show her its a place for both genders

StCharlotte · 07/12/2019 12:45

We don't do it (apart from school holidays when teen kids come in to help out with file closing etc) and it would be deadly boring. I'm childless and I love children so it wouldn't bother me at all but I appreciate your thoughtfulness OP Smile

My dad worked for the BBC at TV Centre so it was a massive treat when he took us (and sometimes our friends too) to work!

Elieza · 07/12/2019 15:42

My work do this and have a whole day full of learning experiences planned for the kids. Not about the boring work we do though. The exciting aspirational stuff.

We also do work experience over the summer and the kids are paid the same rate as a new employee would get.

Unfortunately the kids dont have to do the boring stuff like filing and copying documents etc. They shadow senior people. Great to give them aspirations of being a boss but they leave school expecting to be a manager when they clearly can’t be as they have no working experience of anything.

And then they are bored by the reality of the filing and photocopying and quit their job and go crying to mummy that the job is boring. Yeah. No shit Sherlock. (Unless of course they have realised how much stuff they can buy with their wages)!

I think it would be better to see all the jobs of all grades and see how they fit together. That would give them a broader picture of what we do and why we do it with an end product.
And it would be better if they did this in day three different work places so they could see what they like and don’t like.

I never knew what I wanted to do. I still don’t but only have experience in one field. I wish I’d had the opportunity to try being a painter and decorator or a vet nurse. I may have gone down a completely different path!

reluctantbrit · 07/12/2019 16:40

@user1494050295 similar here, When DD is on holiday and we are on a London we often pop into my office with cake or chocolates and say hello. She knows the office quite well, no need to “work” at a younger age as it only disrupts the whole office (open plan with 50 people)

user1494050295 · 07/12/2019 18:19

&reluctantbrit exactly they love going in don’t they. Mine is an open plan with about 50 people too. We also visit the lecture halls and the library so she gets a sense of the environment

Natsku · 07/12/2019 19:18

I have no experience in this but I would like to think that one day a year of lowered productivity is worth it for showing children what the world of work is like and letting them see what their parents actually do.

My dad was a vicar so on take your daughter to work day he had me type up his sermon while he dictated so was quite good for my taking dictation skills I suppose.

Peachypips78 · 07/12/2019 19:57

I think it's a good idea. DS1 is having one next term, and I was worried as I work in a psychiatric inpatient unit and thought he wouldn't be allowed to come in. However, the ward manager said it would be fine and fantastic for destigmatising mental illness for young people.

We'll see how it goes!

Aaarrgghhh · 07/12/2019 21:04

If it’s safe for the child and not disruptive I don’t see the problem really. It seems nice.

Brownpaperparcels · 07/12/2019 21:42

NC as this is so specific, but I went with my Dad to work on the take your daughter to work days every year from late primary school onwards. I now work in the same company (multiple professional qualifications in between) and I regularly find evidence of things I did on those days. I was given projects to do, and loved it. Did it encourage me into a non-female industry, probably helped. Was it worthwhile for the company, possibly (or else there wouldn’t be any evidence of those days 20 years on). So done well, it can be great

PixieDustt · 08/12/2019 08:41

I think they can be a good idea if you work within a safe environment for children.
Where I work I wouldn't want to bring my DS as it isn't a safe environment for children.

ooooohbetty · 08/12/2019 08:57

Good idea. Maybe not for a whole day though.

Greyhound22 · 08/12/2019 09:05

DS5 is a bit too young but he's been in for an hour. Our work is very family friendly and no one bats an eyelid if kids come in - in fact the director sometimes leaves his with us if he needs to go to a meeting and hasn't got childcare (they're older so will sit on a game etc quite happily for a couple of hours).

DS loved it - he managed to call the receptionist at one point and they were having a lovely chat, banged about on my computer for a bit and declared when he is older he's going to work there every day.

I can't imagine it working if you're a police officer or surgeon.

EoinMcLovesCakeJumper · 08/12/2019 10:14

I don't have children and never wanted them, so I don't find it upsetting to see kids, but I don't want them to be around the workplace when I'm trying to get on with my job. Those of you who are saying "it's just one day, kids are everywhere, you can't expect the whole world to bend to your wishes" etc, are missing the point. Yes, children are everywhere, but the workplace is generally the one place where you can expect them not to be (obviously barring teaching or social work). Those of us who don't really get on with kids have few enough places where we can get away from them as it is.

I'm not a monster, I don't hate children, but I don't have any kind of knack with them. When I'm presented with a baby or toddler I just can't do all the cooing and compliments that you're meant to do. I can cope with the kids of friends and family but I don't want to be put in that position when I'm at work.

Secondary school aged kids maybe, if they're given something to do and not just plonked in a corner to get bored.

overnightangel · 08/12/2019 15:12

It would do my head in when I’m trying to get my job done.
I don’t have kids, maybe I could bring my dog and cat in. They’ll be just as productive and less distracting

EmpressLesbianInChair · 08/12/2019 15:21

A bring your animal to work day would be much more fun than a bring your kid to work day IMO.

ItsChristmaaaaaaaaas · 08/12/2019 15:29

Well at least the kids won’t try to eat or have sex with each other/your leg...

GruntBaby · 08/12/2019 15:39

DH's company (international tech firm) does an annual bring your kids day, where there are tech activities all through the day, such as coding drones and robots. Very education and inspiring.

We don't have one at my place, too sensitive.

What I would like to see is +1s so that the days at big tech firms, law, accountancy etc. are also open to those beyond the children of the staff. This would help with social mobility, especially if they also offer +1 internships later on. I volunteer for a social mobility charity, and so many kids from economically deprived families have no clue about all the opportunities out there.

Backstabbath · 08/12/2019 16:05

In a bog standard office with no nuclear waste or other hazardous waste... etc etc then what harm can it do... we all know that the average office worker spends 5 hours a day on Facebook/ bbc website or chatting.
Great idea to get children engaged with life... what child doesn't want to know about where their parents work.. it's fun

BryanAdamsLeftAnkle · 08/12/2019 19:07

Don't think I will bring my child to A&E. I'm a nurse or to my husbands work in secure mental health unit...
🙄

We can talk about the joys of nursing without bringing him to work