missing work because i was up all night long with my sick children

by craig
(winchester va)

my 5 year old boy was vomiting all night and my 8 year old daughter was up doing the same.I didnt go to sleep until 3 a.m. and kept on sleeping till about 2 p.m. so they said it was no call no show and let me go the next day.



Hi Craig,

Are you a single parent?

Was this the first time you no called/ no showed?

Comments for missing work because i was up all night long with my sick children

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Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Sick child not the issue.
by: Employers view

What employers deal with a lot of the time is single parents with sick children, that is not the issue.
The problem is when those same single parents miss work for non emergency reasons and then fall into the habit of using the kids as the reason.
Most companies use a point system for missing work.
If you take your child to the Dr.bring an excuse back to work to put in your file to keep from accumulating points, most of the time this doesn't happen and it does throw up a flag to the employer.
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Single Mother
by: Anonymous

Yea i am a single mother and i have been at the same job for going on 5 years, i have had the same child for that long nothing has changed if i had to take off and take her to dr or myself it was fine. Well she had to have braces and it was an every 6 week visit to get the tightened, and then i had to take her to the dr. for a shot. Then it's been 3 years sense i have seen the dr. and i am not feeling good and have not for some time and i go.Well im told i have parkinsons disease and i have to go back in a couple weeks to see him again and see if my meds are working. Well just yesterday his wife come in and fired me cause i have to miss to much work. They told me that someone else needs to care for my child and my health is not important there business is more important. They told me that 6 days a year is all one is to miss work but it does not say that in the manual nor has it ever been mentioned in the past.



Well .. this is not work related misconduct .. that would be if you didn't call in or inform the employer of the Dr. appts.

I have also had to assume that your employer is so small (less than 50 employees) that intermittent FMLA wasn't an option for you.
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Employers; This is the 21st Century and not the 1950's
by: Nanlisa

If you're a working parent, I can imagine how hard it is to work and take care of a child at the same time. You're torn between a rock and a hard place. Your boss has a business to run, but at the same time, you've got to work in order to keep a roof over your head, food in your stomach, clothes on your back, your utilities on, and so forth.

Employers need to realize that we are not living in the days of June Cleaver and Ozzie and Harriet anymore. In this day and age, both parents have to work in order to survive. And with so many marriages today ending up in divorce, a lot of kids today are being raised in a single-parent household. Some of them either can't afford childcare or they have no family or friends who can watch them while you work.

It's not that easy. Just simply let your employer know that you have child care issues. It's not your fault that your kids get sick, you have to go to a teacher's conference, you can't get a babysitter, you can't afford child care, and so forth. What does the employer expect you to do? Leave your kids home alone and come into work and then all of a sudden, you are charged with child endangerment?

If you can't work out any child care issues with them, then simply go find another job. It's not going to be that easy but you don't need to work for someone who's still living in the 1950's as far as child care goes.
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Employers Are Still Living in the 1950's When It Comes to Working Parents
by: Nan

I hate to say this, but if you're a working parent, employers today are still living in the days of June Cleaver and Ozzie and Harriet. In this day and age, both parents have to work in order to survive. Also, more than half the marriages in this country end up in divorce, and a lot of kids are being raised in a single-parent household.

If you're a working parent, you are torn between a rock and a hard place. You have to work, but at the same time, you have to take care of your kids. It's not your fault that your kids get sick, you have to leave early to go to a teacher's conference, you can't get a babysitter, you have childcare issues, and so forth. What does the employer expect you to do? Leave your kids at home alone while you come to work, and you end up facing child endangerment charges? I know this from experience, because I've read stories in my local newspaper about this. A single mother can't get a babysitter/has no childcare. She has to go to work. The kids are left home alone. Soon the mother is arrested for child endangerment charges.

If you lose your job because it affects your child care, it certainly doesn't hurt to file for unemployment. If they turn you down, you can always file an appeal. And in the meantime, try to find a job that'll understand that you're a parent first.

Good luck.
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Heartless Employers!
by: Anonymous

Most employers are heartless when it comes to matters of family and if they do have kids and are heartless is because they have nanny's who take care of their kids so they think all parents are available to work.

If you are fired for taking care of your children and there were no previous issues of you missing work then perhaps they were just looking for any excuse to get rid of you.

I would think that you can collect unemployment on that issue but I'm not expert on that but had to comment on this since I know, as a mother of 2 children 10 & 2 1/2 that our children are #1 to us but we also need to support our family!

You shouldn't have any problems I pray, I hope for the best for you and you job search!

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