Asking employer to cover childcare costs

[Totupthenumberspls]

I’ve been asked to go on a business trip for a week, is it unreasonable to ask the company to pay the incremental childcare costs?

I don't see any reason why someone should be out of pocket for a work trip.

Except she won't be, as she has a partner who can handle the childcare.

What is to be lost by asking, @Totupthenumberspls? At least have the discussion with HR/your manager, and make the case that your family budget will have to lay out an unexpected extra £300 because you are away. You are right; this cd make your employer seem progressive in an important area of working life. Good luck.

I can’t believe you’d even consider asking…your contract stipulates travel is part of the job.

So if I go away for work, they should also pay for someone to come and feed my fish?

When I first read this I thought you were being a bit batshit @Totupthenumberspls, but actually the more I think about it the more I think actually you have a

Saying her partner/husband can cover is only an answer of by doing so you are not I packed negatively...so he may well be able to go in late and finish early but would that mean his wages are effected. If they are then childcare extension is a good choice. But that incurs additional out of pocket expenses that in the normal circumstances of doing their jobs they would not have. Therefore the company ought to offer compensation for that as they would if they expected you to wine and dine clients but won't give you a company credit card, you would expect to be reimbursed for the out of pocket expenses.

A one off trip to the next town and I would be saying auck it up but 10 days to Africa. I would at least be floating it in an "well I will need to schedule additional childcare hours so that I can fulfill your request, is there any additional compensation for those expenses" and see what gets said.

My employer does this (public sector) but only for childcare costs. Anyone with kennel/cattery/house-sitter or even adult care responsibilities has to go whistle. I think it's outrageous but perhaps you could switch employers OP.

Sorry, I wasn’t pointing fingers at you at all, I was just talking generally!

I would check your expenses policy but think it would be unusual for childcare costs to be covered during business travel if business travel may be required as part of your role.

If you role and contract would not require you to travel and they are asking you outside of your contract then may be open for negotiations.

I work for a large company and they paid my childcare costs previously when I was asked to work during my annual leave during half term to meet an unexpected deadline, and I was happy to swap my leave if the holiday camp was paid for during those 2 days.

You can ask they'll probably laugh as its in your contract travel as required.
You wouldn't expect them to cover expenses if it was a Dad who was travelling.

My employer covers additional childcare costs incurred while travelling above my usual costs so it is definitely worth asking!

@Onceuponaheartache

Saying her partner/husband can cover is only an answer of by doing so you are not I packed negatively

My main thought is always that not everyone has that flexibility. Some people can't take leave at certain times of the year - when DH was in retail, no leave was allowed in January for example. Adjusting hours doesn't work if you must be there for certain tasks at a certain time.

And some employers are just arseholes.

Respectfully I don’t agree with the suggestion that she is taking the piss - the only person who can make that decision is her employer. It’s up to them if it shows lack of commitment. She might be so fantastic in her job that they are willing to make allowances and she is worth adjusting things for in this instance. There might be other aspects of her job that she goes above and beyond in. We have no idea as we aren’t her employer. People in here have decided that her employer will hear her request and decide that she is a terrible woman who has ruined any further advancement of women in the workplace and must have no further career progression.

Although I take someone else’s later point that the issue is with her DH. I think the reason why I’m trying to make this point is that women NEVER feel like they’re able to ask for concessions in their job. Men? They ask, they often get. Women are made to feel they can never ask for extra holiday or a pay rise. And the more women who shout at someone who wants to make a personal request in their own job that they’re damaging the entire of womanhood find quite frustrating. We all know that if a man were faced with the same
problem he’d bloody well ask and I bet in lots of circumstances would get too. Lots of men get pay rises this way. I don’t think we should be shouting down women who want to make requests in their own workplace. If she feels like she isn’t being paid enough for the job role - which essentially you could argue this is - then she is well within her rights as a woman to ask. Plus life circumstances Change. We can’t we ask for our role to adjust along with our lives? The worst they can do is say no. I HATE the attitude of ‘well my single mother went to work with no arms and one leg and she still manage to raise me and my 10 brothers, that’s a strong woman’. No it isn’t. It’s a woman who was treated piss poorly by society. It’s oaky to ask for changes.
And before someone says to me but the OP just isn’t asking her partner that’s where her issue is, yeah I get that and as I have said multiple times it’s really bizarre and I don’t see why he can’t help out, but I dislike the argument that the OP is attacking feminism by asking for more out of her own job. If she had come in to say she wanted to ask for a £300 pay rise I think the situation would be different, it’s purely because she’s mentioned the c-word that people are up in arms about it.

Precisely! All she needs to do is ask, it may even be something they consider in future due to her asking.

It’s really not the huge deal being made out to be here.

Op , I worked in a very male dominated industry for many years. There was little thought given to whether ‘how we have always done it’ worked with changing demographics.

I was pretty comfortable pushing the envelope in what I asked for , not
demanding but having a discussion. Thats how things change.

So, talk to your manager , explain you are happy to go but you will be out of pocket. And just ask whether there is a policy about that. Good luck 🤞

You think an employer would compensate you for missing a gig?! 😆

Ask one of your neighbours or a friend who lives locally.

Oddly many people are happy to help with tasks like that.

I don't understand how you think this is going to work out in the long run.
Business trips are in people's contracts, yours included.

You incur extra expenses for wrap around care (many people would argue that your dh could assist for a week, but if you insist he cannot -fair enough).

Jacob also has children and his 2 daughters do drama lessons on a Wednesday but since he's on a work trip, who is going to take them?
So he requests taxi money so they can still go.

Sally has a dog so needs someone to walk the dog, she also asks for extra money, cause why should she be out of pocket for a business trip.

John is an avid planter and needs someone to housesit to water all his plants - he also want the business to cover that.

I do a weekly non refundable yoga class which I'm now missing out on. I want that paid back because I don't want to be out of pocket.

I mean how would we draw the line.
Expenses for wraparound care in all circumstances? Just single parents? Extramural activities? Kids and dogs?
Plants? Grandmother's that you look after?
Your sisters kids that you babysit on a Tuesday?
You've got to understand why this wouldn't work?

Yeah @Reugny and the OP has her child's father to look after her child.

I know a few - private sector - who have.

I work for an ndpo ours would cover it due to additional out of pocket costs for disrupted routine early starts late nights.

I dont think it's misplaced to enquire if your employer will reimburse their employee for childcare that is now needed if the employee is sent abroad on behalf of their employer. If this working abroad situation has arisen after employment started and therefore is a new aspect of the role.

Gone are the days employers can expect 'a wife' to maintain the home while the full-time worker goes abroad for work for a bit.

Many employers pay for their employee children's education when they are sent abroad for over a year etc. So I'm just saying that employers need to think about their employees home situation when making these types of requests.

Tell them this and they can employ somebody else

If you don't ask you do won't get. Broach it with them. Worse thing is they say no. Maybe they'd meet you halfway if not meet the full cost.

You’re comparing watering a plant to looking after a human being?

And as other workplaces do offer childcare costs to be compensated, you do understand why this can easily work if the employer agrees?

More and more businesses have policies for those with caring responsibilities to other humans. However pets and plants are out of scope.

Mine does too, or it did back in the day when international travel was a regular occurrence.

it was a daily rate to cover any additional expenses occurred due to being away from home outside of working hrs - so it could be used for childcare, pet care, or whatever really.