Do parents get more time off from work than non-parents?
It’s an age old debate in the workplace: Do parents get more time off than non-parents?
I don’t know if there’s an answer to that question or not, really.
I do know, that since I’ve had kids, I feel like I’m asking for and explaining myself a lot more often, but, at my workplace, I don’t get any more than anyone else. And, as you well know, my time off isn’t really “off” anyway.
If you work someplace that has benefit time (vacation, sick, holidays), then you just get what you get, and, everyone has the potential to earn the same amount.
When I was a manager, I granted time off based on the staffing, and, it was usually first come, first served. Sure, there’s unexpected time off, parents, and non-parents alike, call in for various reasons, but, you deal with that according to the stated attendance policy.
I know not every workplace is like that, though. So, you tell me: Do parents get more time off than non-parents? Does it cause tension in the workplace?
At my office, parents don’t *get* more time, but we *take* more time. The non-parents have a lot more time off saved up.
Great topic! Unless addressed tactfully by a manager, this topic can cause a lot of resentment. I remember when I worked in an office where I was few years older than the rest of the workers. I had babies and they were just getting married. I know that there were times that I missed work to stay with a sick kid and the younger employees didn’t “get it.” (I never exceeded my allotted personal time, though.)
A few years later, the situation corrected itself as my colleagues started to have their own children. Suddenly, they were the ones asking for time off to be with a sick baby.
Interesting post- I defintely don’t feel that I’m as PRESENT as those colleagues who don’t have kids, but I wouldn’t call my absence from being IN the office as “time off” – I’m usually dealing with child care crises, doctor’s appointments, etc. So I’d make that distinction. My time away isn’t fun, really.
It depends on the company and how “official” their policies are. On my job…the answer is NO. However, what blurrs the lines is the fact that the time taking off of time, is much more sporadic by those with young children. The employees who have no children or older children tend to plan their days of far in advance and in much more formal increments, like a week of vacation. And then they tend to rarely use available comp and sick days.
Parents on the other hand are more likely to use sick and comp days. Especially when kids are sent home in the middle of the day because of a fever and aren’t allowed to return for 24 hours. Or sometime we use our comp and vacation days to stay home with our kids on teacher/school holidays.