Parents are often faced with a problem, especially in the winter months: where to go with the sick child when mother and father have to go to work? Can you take it to work?
Children at work
In principle, in this case there are no legal regulations that prohibit employees from taking a child – whether sick or not – to work. But it is not always allowed by the bosses either. It is important to inform your supervisor in advance if necessary to ensure that the company in question tolerates bringing your children to work if necessary.
The type of job also plays a crucial role, as children are usually not insured against accidents. It is easier for a mother with an office job to take her child with her and protect her from danger than for a craftsman on a construction site or a chemist in a laboratory. Therefore, bringing children with you is not permitted in some professional groups. However, since it can still be disruptive for colleagues in the office, some companies have special parent-child offices or even the option of working from home on certain days, which can significantly improve the working atmosphere.
What about a sick child?
In the best case scenario, you should ask your pediatrician how contagious the illness in question is and whether it is safe to take the child into the office to see your colleagues before taking them to work. In the case of serious or highly infectious illnesses, you should definitely keep the child at home and give yourself time off if there is no other option for care. As a parent, you actually have the right not to go to work but to look after your child at home if, according to the doctor, the child needs care and is not older than twelve years. However, this should last a maximum of five consecutive working days, although the law allows up to ten working days per year, as the employer can expect the employee to organize other care by then.
Alternative care options
Even though more and more companies allow or even encourage contact with both sick and healthy children at work, many bosses and supervisors still do not like it, which is why you should think in advance about who will take care of them in the event of an emergency can take care of the child. The best option is probably to place the sick child with relatives, as grandparents, for example, are often already retired and are happy to be able to spend time with their grandchildren or do something good for them.
Another option, which is a little more inflexible, would be to form a network of several households in the neighborhood. This network should then be organized in such a way that someone from the entire group of parents is always at home so that someone can look after sick children if necessary without having to cancel important appointments.
Editorial team finanzen.net