If we're to keep everything consistent here, I guess Dusty should have thought about having to care for sick parents before she put a burden on the rest of us by coming to work while her parents are still alive.
Yes, I do think it's small-minded. In my office, some have children and some do not. Fathers are as likely as mothers to take off with a sick child. Happens all the time. The company allows us to use our sick leave for this purpose--or to care for a sick parent. Family medical leave is available if your parent or, heaven forbid, your child is ill for an extended period. Meanwhile, single or childless or even parentless people do get sick and miss work. Flu, cold, gastrointestinal disturbance or worse--they miss work. Do I sit around whinging that I have to make up the work of people because they had the nerve to go and get sick on my shift? I should say not.
I'm no longer at the stage of my life when I'll be having more babies (I hope). A co-worker recently did have a baby and yes, the other two admins in our group had to pick up the slack. One of us is a mother and the other is not--and it never occurred to us to whine and complain that we had to do her work while she enjoyed time off with a newborn. I'm sure not going to be moaning about this when that child is in the work force and I'm on social security.
My husband is now able to share equally in missing work when our child is sick. It wasn't always so. It made more sense for me to miss, because if one of us were to be let go because of absences, it might as well be the one who earns less. We are fortunate in having a healthy kid who rarely misses school for illness.
My mother used to have to lie about being ill herself if she had to stay home from work with us. Maybe the angry childless and the furious parentless would like to go back to that system.
Edited by dettu on 22/02/07 02:33 PM.
