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If I have PTO, I can use it for whatever I wish. I do find parent-teacher conferences to be very important to me and they are usually only on an "as needed" basis these days (perhaps in consideration of working parents). Also, while "tummy aches and sniffles" aren't reasons to wantonly abuse company policy, you cannot admit a child into daycare if he/she has a fever that sometimes accompanies those sniffles.
Again, if I have PTO, I will use it. If I run out of PTO, then my husband will use his. The issue are those who abuse the system while either out of PTO or not using PTO entirely.
I was probably a lucky kid. I rarely got sick. I had classmates who were sick all the time.
[This is an ad nauseum argument with no right or wrong answer. Yes, it's wrong for single people with no kids to feel dumped on./QUOTE] and i agree that parents do deserve sympathy. but besides leaving early and overtime, there is the problem of shift assignments. i was in adult ed. we had morning and evening assignments. i was valued. however, again and again, my friends and i were told we could not have a morning assignment because so and ao needed to be home with their kids. so i had to work nights for 23 years, except of course, summers, when the parents took off to be with their children. and what about, oh, he or she has a "family". they NEED the extra hours. i did not have kids because i thought i couldn't afford them i family is a choice and there is discrimination if you are single, and especially a single female. my friends and i have compared notes over the years and it seemed to be true for a lot of occupations.
I hear you, I really do. You only ask for fair play. I can understand that. Though, unless you intend to stay childfree, at some point you too will become a parent and will be faced with trying to make it all work.
I dont mind it either, but what I DO mind is the abuse (unless they have a serious condition, why does it seems like your kid gets sick once every two months or once a month), and me being grilled and harassed while the others get an "OK, thats fine. Go take care of little Johnny." I have left work maybe twice, once for the death of my father and the other was because my home got broken into and I needed to leave to file a police report. The former of course my company was very understandable, but the latter I just got asked tons of questions and it just seems like my boss didn't believe me. And when I do call-in sick it's:, "well you know we got the VP in town", or "youre calling in when we have inventory in a couple of days?", "try taking something first then let's see how you feel in a couple hours" Are you kidding me? I'm still not coming in. End of discussion. It's so frustrating!
You should never let it get to that point. Good for you for sticking up for yourself when you call in sick, but that should apply the other 36X days, too. Something different would be if your other co-workers did the same for you when you needed to leave early one day, but it seems that is not the case. The poster who wrote about mentioning these cover cases in your coworkers' annual reviews had a good point; this is a fairly neutral way to show you're a "team player" and highlight their lack thereof without going out of your way to do so (ie making a case with HR about them).
The story of my life. Three times in my long career I've even been expected to be a "team player" and take on all the major job duties of co-workers who took maternity leave.
Yes - as a police officer in the 1970's. It was difficult enough to be a woman and I endured remarks about my sexuality, the fact I had no children, etc from both fellow officers and supervisors. Only men with families were usually promoted and the chief would make comments like "so and so is a good family man". Religion came into it also. If someone was a vocal church goer, the chances for promotion were not good and they were harassed.
If the person is using his/her PTO when they leave early and they clear it with their supervisor, what does it matter?
This. I was a single parent and occasionally - rarely, really - had to leave early because my child was ill at school, but I had to use my VACATION time. We weren't allowed to use our own sick leave for sick children. So it hurt me, and me only. My job was one no one else was doing or COULD do, so it didn't impact anyone else in the unit at all.
Of course it's unfair to dump extra work on single people because they don't have kids. It's also unfair to assume that people with children are always, and automatically, the objects of favoritism. In fact, some employers would rather not hire women with children just because they might be less "reliable" due to child care responsibilities. And trust me, when you DO have children, you're not going to be so happy about the people who send their kids to school sick, because then your kid gets sick, and then YOU get sick, and then YOU go to work sick, and make other people sick, ad infinitum (and sometimes ad "nauseum" ).
You can say this sort of thing about other things too... like smokers compared to non-smokers. Smokers at my job take many breaks, so how is that fair to me the non-smoker?
At any rate... there's nothing to be "upset" with or to "complain" about on this subject... family should come first not only for us who have kids but our employers need to be flexible as well. You being single are not at a "disadvantage" because... hey guess what... you get to go home after work each day and do what you want when you want and how you want. You can sleep in peace as well and yadda yadda yadda...
So the "advantages" and "disadvantages" work both ways.
The days of mom staying at home to be a house wife and caring for the children while dad makes all the money are now over.... most families simply can't afford to have just one person working and one person staying home. So you as the single not married with no kids people have to deal with this and so do all employers. Just remember though... those moms and dads who try to abuse this priveledge to be home or go home because a kid is "sick" and are caught lying about this will be handled approproatly.. i.e. termination.
We're all exempt employees, so anything less than a half day doesn't count as PTO.
So they're getting preferential treatment (allowed to leave early 3+ days a week, every week) just because they have kids and I don't.
And it doesn't matter anyway. PTO or not, somebody is going to pick up that slack and I've been there. If it goes on too much for too long, other workers will get resentful.
The problem is PEOPLE DON'T TALK ABOUT IT. They snipe away at each other behind everyone's back... everyone starts to resent everyone... Dysfunctional work space.
When I was single without kids at ANY of my jobs I was ALWAYS willing to help someone out that had kids. Always. But y'know what??? When I needed a favor....
"Hey Jane, can you cover for me? Gotta take the dog to the vet".
And Jane should RECOGNIZE without being told "I help you out all the time".
But if she needs reminded I would TALK to her.
Now that I have a kid: it's no different. Please, ASK me to help you single and childless co-workers. I will. I think most of us "breeders" will when we can. If you work with someone that won't, guess what? Some people are just a********. With and without kids.
Don't resent me because I left a half hour early (and by the way this causes my co-workers zero extra work) to get my kid from day care. Talk to me. Work with me.
And whoever said "not having kids is considered taboo" or whatever. I call BS on that.
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