Kids in the office

southsiderosie

In the wake of the Paul Gogarty stroller-at-a-press-conference incident, how do people feel about colleagues who bring kids to work?

I know that babysitters fall though, etc etc, but if your kid isn't young enough to sleep through the day, or old enough to keep themselves occupied with video games and homework, then I think the parents should just stay home. Nobody wants to smell your kids stinky diapers or hear their temper tantrums at work. And, no, their singing and dancing "performances" aren't half as cute as you think they are.

Am I just being cranky (wouldn't be the first time)? Is bringing your kid to work inappropriate?

Saila

no kids yourself then

chin_grin

Children shouldn't have any bearing in day to day activities. Which is why parents rely on schoolin' and minders to let them get on with their childless activities.

Think about it children ruin everything: Airplane journeys, when you're trying to sleep in the church at a wedding cos you're head is throbbing from the night before...........um...........train journeys............er..........eating at restaurants where the lil c*nt stands up and is staring at you and the minute you make eye contact you're f*cked. The parent see's and does the "aw isn't he sooooo adorable" face. No. It's not adorable. I'm trying to eat and converse without your lil "bundle of joy" interfering.

Phew..........THAT was a rant!

I-Shot-Jr

My dad summed it up quite well once

"I love you...but good christ I made sure not to subject you to anybody else!"

Stained Class

southsiderosie wrote: »

stinky diapers

You American?

They're called nappies over here.

sdanseo

southsiderosie wrote: »

In the wake of the Paul Gogarty stroller-at-a-press-conference incident, how do people feel about colleagues who bring kids to work?

I know that babysitters fall though, etc etc, but if your kid isn't young enough to sleep through the day, or old enough to keep themselves occupied with video games and homework, then I think the parents should just stay home. Nobody wants to smell your kids stinky diapers or hear their temper tantrums at work. And, no, their singing and dancing "performances" aren't half as cute as you think they are.

Am I just being cranky (wouldn't be the first time)? Is bringing your kid to work inappropriate?

Well, fairly obvious you've never had kids :P

I was brought into my parents' offices the odd time as a kid when off sick from school, etc - never really got in the way or made a fuss, just played with the photocopiers.

Once it's only once in a blue moon - what's the problem. The parent can't be expected to leave the child at home, and equally can't be expected to lose their job. Sometimes shít happens and if it means you;ve to listen to a bit of crying for an hour or two then just count yourself lucky you don't own the little monster.

dark crystal

Jesus, what is it with AH and this weird aversion to having children in their immediate environment??

Are kids a frequent occurence where you work, or are you just a really intolerant person? What harm are they doing you?

You used to be a child yourself once, you know.... Hopefully you weren't treated with as much contempt as you seem to have for the little blighters.

southsiderosie

sdonn wrote: »

Well, fairly obvious you've never had kids :P

I was brought into my parents' offices the odd time as a kid when off sick from school, etc - never really got in the way or made a fuss, just played with the photocopiers.

Once it's only once in a blue moon - what's the problem. The parent can't be expected to leave the child at home, and equally can't be expected to lose their job. Sometimes shít happens and if it means you;ve to listen to a bit of crying for an hour or two then just count yourself lucky you don't own the little monster.

If you were sick enough to stay home from school, why would your parents bring you into work to infect the rest of the office? :eek:

My mom used to bring us to work on the weekends, but at that point we were old enough that we could sit and play on the computer. When my dad's company went on strike, my parents couldn't afford babysitters, so he sometimes brought my brothers out on the picket line with him. They thought shouting and marching around in circles was fun.

chin_grin

dark crystal wrote: »

Jesus, what is it with AH and this weird aversion to having children in their immediate environment??

Dunno. I have none and I'm perfectly happy! Weird. I don't have this 9 or so pound void in my life to fill. I can do anything I want without having first to think whether or not it effects paying for a little sh!t that'll probably grow up hating me for no apparent reason.

See, this is the thing. I think I'd be a sh!t parent. Hence not having one (pre-empting the "well, thank jebus you don't" posts).

dark crystal wrote: »

What harm are they doing you?

Being in my f*cking personal space. And needing this thing called "attention". All. The. F*cking. Time. They're like an upturned turtle. Helpless without it

dark crystal wrote: »

You used to be a child yourself once, you know.... Hopefully you weren't treated with as much contempt as you seem to have for the little blighters.

Yeah, and I'm sorry to anybody out there whom I annoyed with my behaviour.

southsiderosie

Stained Class wrote: »

You American? They're called nappies over here.

Yes.

dark crystal wrote: »

Jesus, what is it with AH and this weird aversion to having children in their immediate environment??

Are kids a frequent occurence where you work, or are you just a really intolerant person? What harm are they doing you?

You used to be a child yourself once, you know.... Hopefully you weren't treated with as much contempt as you seem to have for the little blighters.

I had one co-worker who often brought her kids in for the 2-hour gap between school and the end of her workday. They sat and did their homework. I didn't have a problem with that at all - the kids were well-behaved and kept themselves occupied.

I occasionally worked with a woman who insisted on bringing her toddler with her to meetings. The kid used to try to eat staples off of the floor, dug old food out of the trashcan, and occasionally tried to rip her mother's shirt off because she wanted to breastfeed. Generally, 80% of my attention in these meetings was focused on waiting for the kid to choke to death, or expecting to see this woman's boob pop out (yes, it happened once). I realize that this latter issue may appeal to some people, but it gets tiresome. Small children have no place in an office, especially during business hours or meetings.

gsxr1

I think this depends on what you do.

My kid comes to work with me on his off school days.


Im my own boss. And the boss.

If ye dont like it.


You go home.

Without pay . In fact Take the year off:D

mrsdewinter

Honestly... how can this be a big issue: where do you work? I've never worked in an office where people dragged their children in for them to sit around for the day. They might bring them in to meet their colleagues and see where Dad/Mum spends 8 hours a day, or swing by the office with them if they had to pick something up on their day off, but land them in on top of us...?
Seriously?

Dudess

I've never come across this - if it did happen, I'd assume it was because there was no alternative and an extreme rarity, so it wouldn't bother me. I really doubt a parent would particularly want to bring their child to work - for even an hour, let alone an entire day.

Not directed at you OP, but just in general: the AH notion that the world is awash with parents who don't bother curbing any bad behaviour by their kids which affects others, or who are oblivious to the child(ren) acting up and just think it's adorable... well I'm not sure how steeped in reality that notion is - I mostly only encounter apologetic parents doing their best to calm the child(ren) (but a toddler can't always be reasoned with) and don't exactly enjoy them having an episode either, and are in the worst position of all as they have to deal with the kid(s) and the hostility of others.

That said, I can't stand the "Oh obviously you don't have kids" sneering in some cases (understand it in others)...

epgc3fyqirnbsx

Haven't seen it but I think it would brighten the place up and break the monotony - kids are gas

southsiderosie

mrsdewinter wrote: »

Honestly... how can this be a big issue: where do you work? I've never worked in an office where people dragged their children in for them to sit around for the day. They might bring them in to meet their colleagues and see where Dad/Mum spends 8 hours a day, or swing by the office with them if they had to pick something up on their day off, but land them in on top of us...?
Seriously?

That's not what I'm talking about. Swinging through to say hello, or even coming in after school for a few hours (for older kids) is fine.

I worked with a lot of people who were part-time contractors, in part because they had small children, and they used to bring their kids to meetings all of the time, and it drove the staff crazy.

gsxr1

But if a person has to be there. No matter what. They cant be absent.
What are they to do?

It happened to me yesterday. Some school training day for teacher.

Creshe could not take my young lad. Adult/children ratio . Their mistake.

I had to be there in order for everyone to get payed.

Should I have stayed at home? Even if it was bad for business.

NO. Ye have to deal with all sorts of BS at work. Having a kid around for one day, rates very small in BS meter.

Töpher

Bring kid to work, piss off colleagues?

Awesome, thanks!

starbelgrade

As long as they keep their heads down & work hard like everyone else, I don't see any problem with it.

KeithM89_old

Theres always those women who come in after they had a baby just to show it off. If i wanted to see your baby i would have visited you in hospital or at home!

epgc3fyqirnbsx

I'm using a young Phillipino boy as a footstool at the moment

hondasam

I would go mad if people brought their kids to work, I go to work to get away from my own.

southsiderosie

hondasam wrote: »

I would go mad if people brought their kids to work, I go to work to get away from my own.

Haha, it's funny that people on here automatically assume that because I don't like small children in the office I don't have kids...at my old job, the people who were the most annoyed by colleagues bringing small children into the office were the other people with small children!

hondasam

southsiderosie wrote: »

Haha, it's funny that people on here automatically assume that because I don't like small children in the office I don't have kids...at my old job, the people who were the most annoyed by colleagues bringing small children into the office were the other people with small children!

ya I know it's just annoying having to listen to them all day. you go to work to forget the chaos at home. I have nothing against children well not my own anyway. not keen on other peoples kids.

CrazyRabbit

About 8 years ago when I worked a Customer Service Rep for the America PC market, one of the managers brought her 10/11 year old son in for the day and asked us to 'keep him busy for a while'.
So we gave him a headset & let him listen to a few calls. After the 3rd or 4th call, he said it seemed easy....so we let him take a call.

Try to imagine...a team of 12 people crowded around a kid taking a tech support call, trying to listen in as he expertly bull****s the customer. I've never seen so many people struggling to contain laughter, nor have I seen such a confident kid since. He put the customer on hold, got the solution from us and proceeded to walk the user through it. I can't imagine what the customer was thinking when he heard a kids voice on the line, but they stuck with it.

In short, some kids are annoying, others are fun.

Sticky_Fingers

southsiderosie wrote: »

Yes.



I had one co-worker who often brought her kids in for the 2-hour gap between school and the end of her workday. They sat and did their homework. I didn't have a problem with that at all - the kids were well-behaved and kept themselves occupied.

I occasionally worked with a woman who insisted on bringing her toddler with her to meetings. The kid used to try to eat staples off of the floor, dug old food out of the trashcan, and occasionally tried to rip her mother's shirt off because she wanted to breastfeed. Generally, 80% of my attention in these meetings was focused on waiting for the kid to choke to death, or expecting to see this woman's boob pop out (yes, it happened once). I realize that this latter issue may appeal to some people, but it gets tiresome. Small children have no place in an office, especially during business hours or meetings.

I can imagine all the male readers who are married or in long term relationships nodded ruefully while reading the highlighted section

mrsdewinter

southsiderosie wrote: »

That's not what I'm talking about. Swinging through to say hello, or even coming in after school for a few hours (for older kids) is fine.

I worked with a lot of people who were part-time contractors, in part because they had small children, and they used to bring their kids to meetings all of the time, and it drove the staff crazy.

That seems to be the running theme here... Unbelievable. It doesn't happen in my office - and I can't imagine it's good for either children or general productivity.
Tbh, it sounds like middle-class self-indulgence. First of all, there's no way you'd get away with this if you were in an entry-level and/or working class job.
How come you never see checkout girls at tesco trying to shush their kids after childcare has fallen through?

xoxyx

I used to work near a terribly important woman a while ago. She was a little bit earth mothery-ish and she would get these twangs the odd day where she simply couldn't go another hour without seeing her little darlings. So, she'd have the babysitter drop then in, she'd coo over them for a while, and then go into her office and close the door and let them run riot over the floor for the rest of the hour. Used to drive me absolutely scatty, and a more spoiled pair of kids you'd be unlucky to find. Made me wonder if I could get away with locating a child, claiming it for my own and letting it loose in her office. Fortunately, she's since left to be a full time mum and cycles around town with her children in a box on wheels dragging behind her.