My job was always flexible with my son (3 years old) My wife and I both worked there and they would let us handle any of his school or doctor business with no negative repercussions. My wife could leave early at 4 to pick up our kid from daycare and come back and chill with him until I was done around 5:30-6. It’s a family owned business and all the owners had kids themselves so they understood.
Until, my wife got her dream job elsewhere last week and that left me to handle the little dude solo. So I informed the bosses that I would be clocking out at 4 to go pick him up from the near by daycare and bring him back to finish up my work in my office and I would keep him distracted with food and such.
Boss told me yesterday that I should clock out at 4 and not return. That I can’t do my work distracted by a toddler. I’ve proven before that I could do it on days my wife would miss but his argument was that I can’t do it everyday and my “productivity would not be profitable”.
This means I miss out on about 1.5 hours a day. 7.5 hours a week. 15 hours a paycheck. 30 hours a month.
I’m not only pissed about the financial effect. But the bosses have their kids there all the time. When I brought this up my boss said “well my kids are older so I can ignore them, your son is too little”
“Find another daycare that closes later or get a family member” was his only alternative. I told him, “that’s not an option”
I informed him that my son comes first and that it seems like I would have to find another line of employment. “This is a business and you do what you have to do”
Remember, if you think you are an important cog of the machine (I thought I was) you are not.
Sidenote: the company has other employees who they underpay, but sleep on the job or just not do they job outright and they look the other way. I work hard and earn way more so they “expect more from my production”