Needing to make up work hours - should I leave?

[Underthewillowtree1]

Hello!

Im feeling quite stressed, I have a 11 month old and 4 year old. 11 mo is in a childminder (double adult so 6 kids) and 4yo in school. I’ve just started a new job (3.5 months ago) only 2 long days a week (11 hours days). The job is healthcare related and involves seeing patients so I obviously need to be in to do the job.

My 11mo is constantly ill! As I’m sure happens a lot when starting childcare. So far my husband has covered this plus grandparents so I haven’t had to take time off. I had to come home once and I made up the hours the next week with grandparents cover.

Due to various reasons my husband is really struggling to cover currently and his company are making a lot of cuts so he’s worried he might lose his job if he’s not seen in the office. I currently have both children unwell. 1 requiring surgery.

Work are insisting I need to give them another day that I can work next week and it’s really hard getting temporary childcare for a day I don’t usually work, plus I don’t even know if both of them will be back to school etc next week let alone leaving them with a stranger.

i appreciate that I need to do my job in person, should I just leave this job? I feel like this is only going to get worse with the kids being the ages they are and I’m hardly making any money as it is let alone paying extra childcare (I will very much be earning minus!)

With my qualifications this will basically be a problem in most jobs (having to go in person)

Do I need to just quit until they are older? The stress of trying to make up hours and finding childcare is so hard but I feel like this must be really common? How does everyone do it? Especially fulltime?

YABU - don’t quit it will get easier

YANBU - you can’t carry out the job you’ve been hired to do right now so you need to quit

Can you take carers leave? My trust has 3 paid days a year.

Can you afford to be out of work if your husbands job is making cuts?

Please do NOT quit.
This is difficult but not forever.
Keep your job, ask whoever you need to ask, return the favour but keep your job.
I would recommend read all the threads in MN with women who ditched their jobs for exactly the same reason, and ended up depending on their husbands.
We all know that's way to risky in many ways. Do not quit. I have been there. Its way better in the long term if you stay in the workforce.

Yes, they do. That's my experience.
I was asked many times about my gap on my CV. And you do lose earning potential when you return (if you are lucky to go back to what you were doing).

It's a bad idea OP. I got there eventually and now making good money but I made my life way harder by leaving my work for a 3 years break. Don't do it. Some people I know couldn't return to the workforce and have many financial problems now. Don't leave that job.

I was saying the other day to someone at work how wouldn't it be nice if all jobs had to give both parents 10 days dependent leave for the first 12 months of your baby or toddler starting nursery. My dd started nursery end of Sept and I think she's already had about 14 days off ill and that's even with me sending her in when she would have been better off at home. She only goes 3 days a week. She has got a new illness each week. I'm a teacher, my husband is a builder, we have no grandparents help now (one did do two days for the poorly baby but won't do any more as they got ill). It's causing so much tension at home about who is going to have to ring work and say they won't be in. I am so stressed with it. She also gave us all d&v and now we all have that feel crap and shivering one minute, sweating buckets the next. It's so hard. I hope you find a solution that works for your family.

You would still send them to childminder for the day so you could sleep, but if they were ill you would only be able to nap while you take care of them and would end up very tired.

When mine were that age, I did just nights for a year or so.
I spilt the nights so just had a half day kip afterwards.

It’s not forever, it kept me in work with no CV gap and went for higher banded and full time posts once they were older.

You are legally entitled to x many days per year unpaid for childcare reasons. Please check the gov. Com website. They can not make you 'make up' days.

Also there is also the option to call in sick yourself.

Finally kids tend to get sick when they first start childcare which I'm sure you already know so this hopefully won't be a forever problem

You really shouldnt see a gap on your CV as a negative. Previously as an employer "child rearing" wasnt even seen as a gap.