Return to office, different rules

[Strawberriesdelight]

We are now back to work in the office but this doesn't apply to mothers. They can choose office/ WFH. Guess non parents just have to suck it up but is this OK?

Sounds discriminatory.

Yeah, if this is real, I'd be taking that up with HR.

That is definitely discriminatory and would mightily pee me off.

Yeah, that's bullshit and I cant imagine any company arriving at that as a policy.

Need more context. Are they giving parents more time to re-organise childcare or have parents requested and been approved flexible working?

Discriminatory or reasonable adjustment for parents?

Depends how it is worded I suppose.

Let me guess

You haven’t seen once person around since you very recently returned to work
you know that person is a mother
you have put two and two together and made 8

Everyone has the right to request flexible working. Have you made an application?

Have they said it doesn't apply to mothers, or are you assuming because the people who you know have been given this flexibility have children? Because those aren't the same thing.

No mention of fathers?

No mention of fathers. Verbally stated mothers are an exception.

It's not just mothers who have caring responsibilities.

Parents I meant to type, sorry

Then no, that's not ok. I don't think it's legally discrimination - not being a parent isn't a protected category, though I suppose in this case it is sex discrimination if fathers aren't included - but it is clearly wrong and unreasonable nonetheless.

Being a parent is not a disability so reasonable adjustments are not in point.

That's why I said parents.

Now OP has clarified my answer would be a little bit different.

Covid has made many things more fluid and time out for kids off school, nursery etc is one of them.

There are all sorts of things that are outside the norm being accepted to make lives and business easier.

I'm not a parent and can't get to exorcised by this, except for the assumption of 'mothers'. That I could get annoyed by.

????

Reasonable adjustment for covid has less to do with EA2010 than getting businesses back on track.

Or don't we do that any more?

That's why I said parents.

@SamphirethePogoingStickerist it looks like you missed it, but I meant to say parents and corrected myself immediately to that effect.