Telework with a sick child

[Anonymous]

So I need some thoughts, I am a supervisor and our federal agency's telework policy stipulates that telework is not a substitute for childcare. I have an employee with a 6 year old that seems to be sick all of the time (fever, cold, stomach bug, etc). Rather than taking leave she often requests telework for these days. My concern is that I really am not comfortable with this because a six year old typically still requires a good deal of attention throughout the day. .

I have a two year old, and I always take leave if he's sick and it's my turn to watch him. The agency's telework policy doesn't state a set age for which a child can be home without childcare while the parent is teleworking, but I definitely think that age would be older than 6. I feel like I'm being taken advantage of as a flexible supervisor (i.e.: she just emailed me this morning and said that her daughter had a fever and the doctor said she would need to be out of school for the rest of the week, and she was going to work from home. It wasn't even worded as a question.

I don't want to seem as though I'm being harsh, but it's getting a little out of control. I am going to reach out to HR as well to see if there is any additional guidance on the age as well. Thoughts on how to handle?

[Anonymous]

I will use a few hours of telework if I'm home with a sick kid, but it's not usually more than 2 or 3 hours. I can usually get in an hour or two during a nap and then put in some hours in the evening after kids are in bed.

I'm highly skeptical that she can put in a full day with a sick kid.

For episodic telework, we're supposed to submit an outline of what work we'll be doing at home. Does she do that? Does it seem like she's getting work done?

[Anonymous]

Mine's only two, but no way can I telework with a sick child, and I telework 100%, so I'm pretty dang good at compartmentalizing.

[Anonymous]

There is a big, big difference between a 2 year old and a 6 year old. DH and I can both get a full day's work done while our 6 year old is there.

That said, if you don't think the employee is getting a full day's work done or you feel she is taking advantage of you, then tell her she needs to find alternate care for her DD or take leave.

[Anonymous]

Two things:

1 - Is she still getting her work done and performing at the level she would be in the office? For instance, is she as easily reachable and responsive by phone as she would be if she were in the office?

2 - What does her telework agreement say? Does it allow her to work from home whenever she wants to or is it with management permission?

[Anonymous]

The rule is pretty clear that you can't take care of your child while you're teleworking. Perhaps remind her this in person.

That said, I have done this before too and my supervisor does understand that I CAN do SOME work while home with a sick child. I don't take the full 8 hrs off and only log what I actually worked.

Also, do you think she's working when her spouse gets home or after the child goes to bed at night? These are the types of things you should probably talk to her about. Just be clear about the rule but also be flexible that she may very well be able to accomplish her tasks but just not during core hours.

[Anonymous]

I can work all day with a sick 6 year old. He watches movies and naps, I hang out on the couch with him and work from my laptop.

However: It does sound like this employee is taking advantage of you. A fever today means being out of school today and tomorrow, but not necessarily on Friday.

What do you want the outcome here to be? She always takes leave for a sick child? She can telework 1 day, but then needs to take leave for subsequent days? Decide what your policy will be, have a conversation with her about the new expectation, and then be sure to enforce it evenly for everyone you supervise.

[Anonymous]

Is she getting her work done? If yes, I'd let it slide. If no, then address the work as the issue.

[Anonymous]

Telework is not a means of childcare. Yes a day here or there happens and it's doable but she seems excessive with it. It has nothing to do with her still be able to perform her work duties. That is not relevant. You need to explain to her that a day of telework for a sick child is ok with you but after two days, she needs to find alternative care.

[Anonymous]

For me, it depends on the illness. If they have something like an ear infection, strep, etc that comes with fevers and tiredness, it's easy for me to work from home. Even with my 4 year old. Had to 1 day last week and he spent the entire day in my bed either sleeping or watching a movie.

If it's a stomach bug and I know I'm going to spend a lot of time cleaning up, bleaching, and making sure they are hydrated, I'm not going to be productive so I take leave.

How productive is she when she teleworks? Or do you suspect that it's just an excuse? And if so, is it out of bounds to request a doctors note?

I'm a federal contractor and our company and client is flexible with telework. I've been with the client several years so they know that I'm very productive when I telework. And they know if I can't get something done during the day I will work in the evening when my husband gets home. When my daughter had impetigo she had to be out of school a week. But she didn't feel sick so keeping her occupied while I worked was not easy. If I had to log off for awhile, I let the client know and when I expected to be back on and status of anything I was working on. Demonstrating that I readily available, letting them know when I wouldn't be, and having open lines of communication about everything was very important

[Anonymous]

Generally the law is an 8 year old can stay home alone.

But we are not talking about a law, she legally can not leave the child alone, but the question is, can she work.

I always let my staff work at home with a sick child and I ask that they only log the hours they actually work.

My sick 6 year old would sleep until 9, then lay on the couch all day. So I would get a lot of work done.

Your problem is that you manage by hours and not by productivity. It is an antiquated way to manage. What do you want done? Does she get that done on time?

If she is out all week work will not be done. If she can work most of the day, work will be done. The problem is you don't know how to manage work, you manage hours. You should take a management class on how to manage by deliverables and milestones instead of billable hours.

[Anonymous]

Don't feds get tons of sick leave? Tell her she has to use sick leave. It is what the agreement is, and if she doesn't like it, then too bad. It really is not about if she can get her work done or not; it is about the terms of what you'll agreed to re: telework. Sometimes you just can't be nice as a manager.

[Anonymous]

What does your agency's telework policy specifically say? Mine says employees cannot telework with children present in the working area. The determining factor can't be whether an employee's particular child needs a lot of supervision/interaction or not. How in the world can a supervisor judge that? I think a "child" is defined as a child young enough that a parent can't leave him or her home alone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Telework is not a means of childcare. Yes a day here or there happens and it's doable but she seems excessive with it. It has nothing to do with her still be able to perform her work duties. That is not relevant. You need to explain to her that a day of telework for a sick child is ok with you but after two days, she needs to find alternative care.

OP here - this is my primary concern. She seems to be working most of the time, but it's the frequency that it's happening that isn't reasonable. I just checked my calendar and she has teleworked 7 times in the past month due to a sick child. I don't even see how her child can reasonably miss that much school, even in kindergarten. She has complained about her commute in the past, and I'm starting to wonder if she is saying she has a sick child to get out of coming to the office.

[Anonymous]

I also telework 100% for a government contract and when my 9 yr. old is home sick, I can still get a lot of work done. When he was 6, it was more challenging, however, he's always been that kid that could entertain himself if he needed to, but I also would work very very early in the morning, and later that night to make up time.

I rarely take time off when he's home ill, but he's just one of those kids who doesn't mind watching TV or playing on his DS. If he's really really sick, he'll sleep.