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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To think that, no, bringing your 4 year old in to work with you all day is really not a good idea?

69 replies

TantrumsAndBalloons · 17/10/2013 14:37

Especially when you work in a communal office and you the parent work as a call centre agent meaning you are supposed to be on the phone for the whole 8 hour shift?

I am covering the call centre managers shift as well as trying to do my own job today because of the strike.
And I know it's bloody hard trying to arrange childcare when you are a working parent.
I've had to do it myself today.

But 9-5 in a call centre with 10 other people and a 4 year old is surely never going to work.

The little boy is adorable. But he's 4. And obviously 4 year olds are loud and get bored easily and need to be taken to the toilet quickly by someone, needs to be taken to the kitchen to get a drink.

Everyone else is complaining to me, I don't normally work in this part of the office so I don't know who agreed to this but.... It's not going well.

I don't want to offend her at all because I know that she had no other option but I am thinking of letting her go home now and authorize pher wages so she gets paid for the last 2 hours.

If I suggest that will she think I'm a cold hearted bitch who hates children?
It's just getting a bit unbearable now tbh.

OP posts:

comewinewithmoi · 17/10/2013 14:40

Nope she'll be pleased. Win win

grovel · 17/10/2013 14:41

Lock the kid in a broom cupboard.

AuraofDora · 17/10/2013 14:41

Can you ask her who authorised it?
Your solution sounds reasonable. My colleague suggested bringing kids in to the office, but she is slightly unhinged. it does not work. Good luck

TheSkiingGardener · 17/10/2013 14:41

Wow! Who on earth thought that was going to work! No, send her and her 4 year old home, pay her but make it clear there will be no repeat. You're a manager, so the job has to be the first priority in your decisions.

Justforlaughs · 17/10/2013 14:41

In your shoes, I'd be paying her wages myself just to get the 4 year old out of there!

ilovesooty · 17/10/2013 14:42

Of course she had other options. She could have taken the day as annual leave or asked for emergency unpaid leave.

This is really irresponsible on her part and causing far more annoyance by the sound of it than her not coming to work at all.

CoffeeTea103 · 17/10/2013 14:43

You are not being unreasonable to ask her to leave. She is ridiculous to do this. If she had child care issues she should have stayed home. What happens if the child gets hurt at work?

ilovesooty · 17/10/2013 14:43

I'm afraid I wouldn't necessarily pay her for the last two hours either.

PavlovtheCat · 17/10/2013 14:45

I know it's hard. But. this strike wasn't a surprise, was it? We were informed of the potential at least last week.

However, regardless, it's happened now. I think your suggestion is fair.

cottoncandy · 17/10/2013 14:46

Crazy. I can't imagine what my office would say if I turned up with my four year old in tow, and I don't have to be on calls all day! I think that if you are nice about it then what you are suggesting is fine. I would go with 'I am not sure who authorised this but I don't think it's really working in this environment, so would you mind taking him home, I will make sure you get paid for the rest of the shift but please make other arrangements in future' line

Justforlaughs · 17/10/2013 14:46

I can't think of ANY job where you would be allowed to bring your 4 yo with you. Yes, of course it can be hard to arrange something but that's one of the downsides of being a working parent. Even when I worked in a pre-school I couldn't take a child with me.

Justforlaughs · 17/10/2013 14:47

Sorry, I wanted to add that I bet your insurance isn't covering the child either.

Original poster

TantrumsAndBalloons · 17/10/2013 14:48

I know it's irresponsible. But I do not think that anyone would choose to bring a 4 year old to work if they didnt have to, that's why I am going to pay her

OP posts:

ilovesooty · 17/10/2013 14:49

Good point about the insurance.

I'd send her home. If you don't normally work there do you have any authority regarding pay anyway? No wonder people are complaining.

ilovesooty · 17/10/2013 14:51

I bet some parents would choose to do what she's done to avoid the option of annual leave or not getting paid.

Piss taking. And not fair on other parents.

BikeRunSki · 17/10/2013 14:51

A couple of years ago one of my colleagues brought on her 3 yo dd with chicken pox, with the idea of working in a meeting room with her dd doing some colouring on. I was pg and went ballistic. Quite apart from my reaction, she was sent home sharpish.

HoleyGhost · 17/10/2013 14:52

The person who authorised this is responsible

Original poster

TantrumsAndBalloons · 17/10/2013 14:54

Yes, I can authorize her wages for the last 2 hours, I have just done that.
I have explained that it is not working out and that she will not be able to do this in future.

She seemed very grateful. As is everyone else at the moment.

OP posts:

ilovesooty · 17/10/2013 14:54

BikeRunSki that's awful.

boardcreche · 17/10/2013 14:56

Do you not have a policy on this? Of course the kid can't stay, flippin 'eck. I would have a serious word with whoever said it was okay and let the poor woman go home, and pay her.

ilovesooty · 17/10/2013 14:56

I hope the person who authorised her Piss taking little stunt gets absolutely bollocked. She was lucky not to be packed off with no pay at the beginning of the day.

pigsDOfly · 17/10/2013 15:12

Fair enough. You've authorized payment for her for the last 2 hours, and that's really fair of you. But is it fair on any other working parents in the call centre who made sure they found and, no doubt paid for, extra child care for their children during the teachers' strike? Are they getting to go home early and get 2 hours free pay?

Not to mention all the childless people who turned up for work as usual.

I realize you want to be fair to her, but it sounds to me as if she's being rewarded for taking the piss. She must have realized taking a 4 year old into work was not a good idea.

And yes, I have been a single working parent.

As another poster said the strike hardly came as a surprise.

ilovesooty · 17/10/2013 15:15

I agree absolutely with pigsDOfly

ChippingInNeedsSleepAndCoffee · 17/10/2013 15:17

Tantrums

and to hand around!

Pachacuti · 17/10/2013 15:21

pigsDOfly but if she got it authorised in advance, you can't really wait until she turns up that morning with child in tow and say "Yes, we know we said it would be OK, so you didn't make any other arrangements, but SURPRISE! We were just kidding, now sod off. Hope you didn't need today's wages for food or anything..."

Someone SHOULD have said no when she asked, but they didn't and it's not fair to penalise the mother at this late stage for the general fuckwittedness of her normal line manager.

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