It is a fact of parenthood that people will miss work because their children are sick and cannot go to daycare. It happens and everyone knows it, but that doesn’t mean employers have to like it.

OP and his wife have a policy of switching off days so that neither of them have to miss too much unexpected work. They live in a country that gives them each 30 days a year to care for sick children, so it works out ok.

My wife and I are both working and meanwhile our two kids are in day care, if they are not sick.

Our agreement was that if a child is sick, one stays home the first day, the other one the next day and so on until the child is fit again or one of us catches it too.

On the one hand that way care work is split evenly amongst us, and on the other hand nobody misses suddenly work for an extended time.

At least, it did until HR told OP that it was too much paperwork to have them switch off and she wanted just one of them to cover all of the sick kid days.

We are entitled to 30 days of “child sick pay” per child and per parent. It doesn’t cover everything but IIRC about 85-90%.

Because we are alternating each day we get one doctor’s notice per day and split them accordingly among us; instead of one notice for a week, we would have five which we submit to our employers and health insurance to deal with each other and get paid.

HR (coincidentally the wife of my manager) told me that it is too much hassle to deal with a few papers instead of a single one, and that one of us should stay at home, implying my wife, as it’s sadly still pretty normal for the mother to deal with care work.

We did comply, but I will take my paid child sick days until I run out and then my wife will start to cover it.

The second time OP missed three days in a row his boss questioned him, and OP enjoyed tell him that it was because HR wanted it that way.

Since then our children were sick twice and I stayed home the whole time (3 day and a week).

My manager asked why I wasn’t coming in as I used to and that some orders nearly missed their deadlines.

I said HR (his wife 😇) wanted it that way, and I still have around 50 days of child sick pay left. I really enjoyed the look on his face.

Before anyone assumes anything: My employer is great, and I have a good relationship with my manager and the owner.

No word on whether or not they’ve changed their mind.

The American commenters are amazed at the amount of leave OP gets just for child care.

Some bosses are nice, but still.

Because yeah, most of us don’t end up with much paid vacation.

Don’t you just feel so free?

Things are so different depending on where you live.

I, too, cried in American when I read this.

Wouldn’t it be nice to be treated like a human being by your government?

If you liked that post, check out this one about an employee that got revenge on HR when they refused to reimburse his travel.