To take the exta day working or not?

[0630bitlost]

My DS is 12 months old and I went back to work 2 months ago. I currently work 3 days a week (2 in office, 1 wfh) with baby in nursery (and loves it!) 3 days and I'm at home with him on the other two. I've just been off offered the option of going 4 days a week and I'm struggling to sort out my thoughts.
The extra day a week would leave us with more disposable income each month, even after you factor in childcare. We're not struggling but the end of the month is always tight and I keep a close eye on our finances in general so a little more wiggle room would be nice.
I love spending time with DS but I've got to say I find being at home all day with a toddler exhausting and really hard work, my job is much easier! I would never want to go back 5 days a week but another calm day in the week is tempting. But I'm worried I will regret not spending this time with him when he's grown up and gone away. And I'll miss his little happy face!
Any thoughts from anyone that's done this before me? I know its a very personal decision but I could do with some different opinions on the matter.

If you go up to four days would you be able to go back down to three days at some point in the future, if you wanted to?

It would be a no to me! I recently went from 3 to 4 days and the workload is the same as full time but one less day, and they are only little for a short while if you can spend the time with him! If you only have one day off most of it will be jobs anyway!

As always on these threads, I will say that it is very common for people working 4 days a week to just be expected to do a FT job for 4 days pay. So, it depends on the job.
If you do work that is responding to what is in front of you on the day (like retail, or hospitality, or you're a mechanic or hairdresser) then I'd do the 4th day.
If you do work where it is clearly measurable and you are certain you are only getting 4/5 of the workload then I'd also say go back.
However in many jobs (and it is often roles that are seen as 'professional roles') you are expected to 'complete projects' or 'manage clients', then I would need to be assured of very clear boundaries to protect the workload.

I would definitely consider this, especially if things could be better financially, but I’d ask about doing full time in 4 days. What are full time contracted hours (35, 40…?) and what’s your job like, is it client-driven, do you have control over your workload/diary?

I currently do full time hours compressed into 4 long days. I get three days off every week and full time salary/pension/annual leave. My full time contracted hours are only 35 though so easier to squeeze into 4 days than when I had a 40hr contract. Also depends on your employer, type of work etc etc. I have much better boundaries than I used to and consequently manage my workload better, but I’m supported by my manager and leadership team to do so. Would be a different story if they didn’t give that support.

Also consider which days you’d work, if you do 4. It’s lovely having a long weekend every week, but I’ve also had a midweek day off (due to childcare) and that was also pretty good in a different way - breaks the week into two smaller chunks, didn’t affect bank holidays, and I think my DS liked the break too - he was never in nursery for more than two days in a row at that time. Think about what would suit you, and then how to sell that to your employer - it also has to suit the business.

Your annual leave will also increase, so you might be able to take the odd extra day off if you want to have a bit more time with DS.

Thanks for all your opinions! My job is actually very easy. For various reasons I swapped from a manger role to assistant role a few years ago so I’m over qualified for my work and can do most of it really quickly. Also, my manager is great so I won’t be over worked at 4 days. It’s just my guilt I’d have to deal with