How do working parents arrange emergency/backup child care?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FWIW I don't think most people have solid backup sitters. You just get used to a higher degree of stress and you figure it out as it comes. I've also done things like send kids to school a little sick figuring it gets me part of a day before (or if) the nurse sends them home. Not great, but it doesn't happen much. If I really couldn't miss work I would consider using a service like White House Nannies. It will be an adjustment and feels like a scramble at times, but it does work out!

Nice. So your kids get a chance to get everyone else sick, you don't miss your precious work, and then the rest of us have to scramble for care for our kids.

This is how I ended up with pink eye for Christmas. -elementary teacher

Do they not send kids home if they suspect pink eye anymore? Pink eye is spread really easily...all it takes is touching a contaminated surface and then touching your eye - you could have picked it up in a number of places (unless you had a kid in your class with a pink, oozing eye; but then I would be hyper-vigilant about hand washing!).

I had multiple kids with pink eye who were went to school by parents last week and then I had to send them to the health room when I noticed it. It obviously was a domino effect after the first one came in and was contagious. By then the damage had already been done. Some parents just dismissed it as allergies when they were called to pick their kid up and argued about it. Of course I was hyper vigilant about hand washing when I could get to a sink but I don't have a sink in my classroom. I Cloroxed every service while wearing gloves but still ended up getting it. Just so you all know--building services doesn't deep clean our classrooms. When bugs go around we're the ones who have to disinfect the whole room.

But at least it was better than the kids who had puked on the carpet in a grade level down the hall last week. My co-worker has spent the whole break with the stomach bug going around her house due to that.

Here's the thing. Kids tell the truth about what their parents tell them. I had one kid who had obvious pink eye tell me that his mom told him she'd take him to the doctor that evening but he needed to go to school. Another who puked on his desk told me that he had thrown up in the middle of the night. So please don't think you're pulling one over on us when you do this.

[Anonymous]

We got an au pair. They can watch sick kids and cover snow days.

We also have back-up care through our work, but it's not guaranteed to be available when we need it. I have used a new home day care that wasn't full yet as back up before and that's worked well.

[Anonymous]

Combination of grandparents and working from home. I find it's not the sick days so much that are disruptive but all of the random days they have off school that I don't. We have a part time nanny who can cover for part of the time. Also have back up childcare offered at work. that has been a great resource for days when they are well but don't have school.

[Anonymous]

UrbanSitter.com. Life saver (often a college student or someone like that). Now I have a list of backups through there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I had multiple kids with pink eye who were went to school by parents last week and then I had to send them to the health room when I noticed it. It obviously was a domino effect after the first one came in and was contagious. By then the damage had already been done. Some parents just dismissed it as allergies when they were called to pick their kid up and argued about it. Of course I was hyper vigilant about hand washing when I could get to a sink but I don't have a sink in my classroom. I Cloroxed every service while wearing gloves but still ended up getting it. Just so you all know--building services doesn't deep clean our classrooms. When bugs go around we're the ones who have to disinfect the whole room.

I totally get sending a child to school with pink eye. Yes- if it is the viral or bacterial one it is contageous. But if it the allergy one it is not. I have had multiple pediatricians tell me that pink eye is no big deal- there are no other health conditions resulting from pink eye- it is just mildly unpleasant while it lasts.

[Anonymous]

Does your sick leave cover dependents? I wouldn’t say anything to your employer until you are in the situation where one of your kids is actually sick and unable to attend school. Then, call your supervisor and explain. Perhaps you can get a few hours in that day and work extra hours later in the week to make up for it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I usually try to split sick days with DH (one of us goes in early and returns at noon, while the other goes in at noon and comes back late).

We often do this too. That way neither of us takes the hit completely, and we are each able to attend some meetings in person.

We do this a lot too. My day skews early and DHs skews late, so I go in super early and leave around lunchtime. DH goes to work and comes home super late.
It is what it is, I guess. With very young kids, telework while they are sick is just a nonstarter, but as they've gotten older it's easier to do email, take a call, etc while they are sleeping or watching a movie. I should add that I DO NOT charge my employer for a whole day, if I've been home with a sick kid, unless magically I actually did 8 solid hours of work (probably early AM and late PM). I typically split the day betweek sick and WFH.
At the first sign of sickness, or snow, or (fill in the blank) we go into serious contingency planning... so that we both know which days we might need to cover if it lingers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I usually try to split sick days with DH (one of us goes in early and returns at noon, while the other goes in at noon and comes back late).

We often do this too. That way neither of us takes the hit completely, and we are each able to attend some meetings in person.

We do this a lot too. My day skews early and DHs skews late, so I go in super early and leave around lunchtime. DH goes to work and comes home super late.
It is what it is, I guess. With very young kids, telework while they are sick is just a nonstarter, but as they've gotten older it's easier to do email, take a call, etc while they are sleeping or watching a movie. I should add that I DO NOT charge my employer for a whole day, if I've been home with a sick kid, unless magically I actually did 8 solid hours of work (probably early AM and late PM). I typically split the day betweek sick and WFH.
At the first sign of sickness, or snow, or (fill in the blank) we go into serious contingency planning... so that we both know which days we might need to cover if it lingers.

This. We check our schedules and see what meetings can or can’t be missed, what can be rescheduled.

[Anonymous]

This country's work culture does not support dual income families so yes, we sometimes send a child with suspected pink eye to school. Sometimes that happens when both of us have an important meeting or deadline to meet. Having inflexible employers didn't factor into our reproductive impulses.

[Anonymous]

We both made a decision to put our careers on the back burner. So, no new opportunities where we would have to prove ourselves before taking lots of time off, no promotions, no travel, no high profile projects. We take as much leave as we need to, unpaid if necessary.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I had multiple kids with pink eye who were went to school by parents last week and then I had to send them to the health room when I noticed it. It obviously was a domino effect after the first one came in and was contagious. By then the damage had already been done. Some parents just dismissed it as allergies when they were called to pick their kid up and argued about it. Of course I was hyper vigilant about hand washing when I could get to a sink but I don't have a sink in my classroom. I Cloroxed every service while wearing gloves but still ended up getting it. Just so you all know--building services doesn't deep clean our classrooms. When bugs go around we're the ones who have to disinfect the whole room.

I totally get sending a child to school with pink eye. Yes- if it is the viral or bacterial one it is contageous. But if it the allergy one it is not. I have had multiple pediatricians tell me that pink eye is no big deal- there are no other health conditions resulting from pink eye- it is just mildly unpleasant while it lasts.

The point is that it wasn't allergies. It was viral or bacterial conjunctivitis but the parents were trying to make excuses so they wouldn't have to deal with it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I had multiple kids with pink eye who were went to school by parents last week and then I had to send them to the health room when I noticed it. It obviously was a domino effect after the first one came in and was contagious. By then the damage had already been done. Some parents just dismissed it as allergies when they were called to pick their kid up and argued about it. Of course I was hyper vigilant about hand washing when I could get to a sink but I don't have a sink in my classroom. I Cloroxed every service while wearing gloves but still ended up getting it. Just so you all know--building services doesn't deep clean our classrooms. When bugs go around we're the ones who have to disinfect the whole room.

I totally get sending a child to school with pink eye. Yes- if it is the viral or bacterial one it is contageous. But if it the allergy one it is not. I have had multiple pediatricians tell me that pink eye is no big deal- there are no other health conditions resulting from pink eye- it is just mildly unpleasant while it lasts.

Please. Stop. Doing. This.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:White House Nannies has a sick/backup care service.

We had this. At the time it cost about $250 a year have them on standby, then more if you actually used it. Over several years, we never needed it.

[Anonymous]

We got to know several neighbors, one of whom offered to help out in a pinch for a reasonable amount of money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FWIW I don't think most people have solid backup sitters. You just get used to a higher degree of stress and you figure it out as it comes. I've also done things like send kids to school a little sick figuring it gets me part of a day before (or if) the nurse sends them home. Not great, but it doesn't happen much. If I really couldn't miss work I would consider using a service like White House Nannies. It will be an adjustment and feels like a scramble at times, but it does work out!

I work full-time, and would never ever do this. It is wrong.

Then you are the only one.