Expected to work 1pm to 8pm but can't get child care

[MummyEmz10082012]

Hi

not sure where i stand with this my employer is expecting me to work 1pm to 8pm as part of my part time hours back to work after maternity leave.

i generally can not find child care to cover these times as my partner works full time until 5pm and does not get home until 6pm and close family members are in the same boat.

the local nursery is only open until 6pm in which case i cant even put lo into nursey and then get someone to pick him up.

Do i have any rights with this? Can they force me to work those hours even though i have no one to care for my lo?

What hours are in your contract? Did you work 1-8 before you went on maternity leave? Or is this a new suggestion?

Have you tried getting a childminder. Can DP not collect at 6 in the nursery?

I think you best bet is to share drop off/pick up with your dh- if he gets in at 6, couldnt he collect from nursery on his way home? Sharing is the only way!!

Yes, can't your DH pick up at 6pm? My DH and I share nursery drop offs and pick ups in a way that fits with both our work hours. If you drop off before you go to work, your DH can pick up.

Can your DH apply for flexible working so that he can leave in time to pick up from nursery? If he normally is home by 6 it wouldn't be too much of a big request.

Have you looked into getting a childminder? I found several who were willing to look after my daughter til 7pm in case of late running trains.

Thanks for all your replies.

My worry is if for any reason my partner got stuck in traffic. hes happy to collect lo from nursey but is worried if he was delayed which has happened in the past.

Its been abit complicated with work as just as i left for mat leave we were taken over by another company and my oringnal role was made redundant but instead of me losing my job altogether they sloted me into this new role.

I did used to do a late day once every other week but this was before lo arrived and i had to consider child care. ive not seen my new contract as of yet as ive been on mat leave and ive had very little contact from my employer.

Also regarding a sitter we are incredibly tight for cash and will proberly struggle to afford to pay for the child care during the day.

Plus being a first time mum really nervous of using sitters :-\

Are you actually going to be better looking for something else?

Would love to but im tied in because of the maternity package ive had. I have to go back for at least 3 months as part of our maternity policy.
Could look for something else if they just made me redundant.

I would say probably a childminder as suggested up thread as some tend to be able to work later. You can also put in a flexible request before you return.

It sounds like 6pm is still doable for your partner though, even with traffic. Could he shift work slightly earlier so he could always leave on good time?

My DH and I both work in central London and our nursery is about an hour away and does 8-6. We have no family nearby and no friends who live close enough to help with childcare.

But we've made it work for the past two years. A typical day might involve me dropping DS off at 8am, while DH goes into work at 7am. Then DH leaves at 5pm and I leave at 7pm. We can both fit in long hours where needed and do drop off/pick up.

If we are picking up, we are really strict about leaving enough time to do it, but make up the time elsewhere.

This was has meant we don't have to use babysitters. I'm not sure DS is ready for a babysitter who isn't family yet (and he's two, I work full time and often evenings!) so that doesn't need to be the solution.

I know it's daunting when you are going back to work but a good childminder or nursery should still be possible for you.

Most people I know have no margin for error in their pick up times. I pick up DS at 5.55, it's the earliest I can get there. So far I haven't been delayed more than about 5 mins, so just made it before 6.

Everyone I know is in a similar position. Childminder will probably be more flexible.

I would go with the nursery option, because I agree that most people are working to a tight schedule and its quite normal for parents to be collecting just a few minutes before the nursery closes. And on the rare occasions that something really unexpected occurs- eg road accident causing big delay, the nursery won't just abandon your child! Our nursery had a policy of charging £5 per 15 minutes over time, but in the years my children went there it only happened once that I had a delay. If you aren't working til 1, you may be lucky and be able to just book a half day slot at nursery rather than paying for a full day, so you drop your dd before starting at 1pm, your dh collects her at 6- sounds fine to me.

Everyone has the right to apply for flexible working - your company are not obliged to agree to it but they need to consider it and reply to your request. I would recommend contacting your line manager and ask for a call or meeting about it. then draft a proposal of what you can do rather than focusing on what you can't do (or don't want to do) There may be room for flexibility. I would also get in touch with colleagues to see if there are any precedents with other parents in your work force. I changed my attendance when my job role changed after 2nd child and first draft was rejected so had to tweak it a bit but put the focus on how I could make it work so that my team and my clients weren't adversely affected.I also listed the childcare options I had explored and discounted with an explanation. There are lots of factors in play - if you are confident with the childcare you have in place it will make you more confident going back to work. Good Luck x

Totally agree with other posters that have said that working to a tight pick-up time is how it is when your DC goes to nursery.

I leave work at 5, it is a 25-minute journey home and I have to pick up DS1 from after-school club (which takes about 10 minutes to park, walk to the classroom and drag DS1 away!) and then 5 minutes to get to nursery to pick DS2 up - so I am usually at nursery by 5.45 but it only takes a bit of traffic on the motorway and I am close to nursery closing at 6. However, I have been picking DC up from nursery for 6 years now and I have only missed the 6pm closing time once.

Initially we had no-one that could pick them up in cases of emergencys but since DS1 has started school, I have got to know a few mums that I could call in if I really had to.