Open Forum

Dear Kathy, thank you for raising this question here! Balancing the demands of family and career is such a struggle, but it's encouraging to think workplaces are strategizing around the tug-and-pull.

I can offer the perspective of someone who received accommodations, and helped shape accommodations for staff, though I'm now independent. Also, in the spirit of transparency, I am not a legal representative and offer the following as information only 🙂:

Due of the safety of all concerned, it is super wise to have a clear policy that includes pre-approval from the staff person's supervisor or HR. This policy may say that bringing a child to work is limited to emergency or short term 1-2 days, and they must remain under the parent/guardian's supervision at all times. 

Because a child has to "fit" the working environment, you may want to extend this offer to parents with older, self-directed children who can work quietly in the presence of the parent. Toddlers and infants require extra TLC a workplace without resources may not be able to safely provide.

As you've indicated, this privilege is restricted to particular areas of the museum and will exclude hazardous environments, collections/storage, public-facing, or other areas with safety concerns. To add to this, I'd restrict to non-public facing roles as the staff's primary responsibility is whole attunement to the guest. And if the guest happens to be a minor, there are even more liability concerns.

All this being said, a former colleague brought her child to work on the rare occasion for years, so we all got to see him grow up. Together they were an exemplar of how this can work. 

Krista Kusuma, MA (Art History, Education), CPCC, ACC (she/her)

Dear Krista,

Thank you for the thoughtful response. What you shared aligns with what we have been doing for a few years, though without a formal policy. You also added an excellent point about why this would not work for public-facing roles. Very helpful towards drafting a policy (which our legal team will review). 

Dear Kathy, thank you for raising this question here! Balancing the demands of family and career is such a struggle, but it's encouraging to think workplaces are strategizing around the tug-and-pull.

I can offer the perspective of someone who received accommodations, and helped shape accommodations for staff, though I'm now independent. Also, in the spirit of transparency, I am not a legal representative and offer the following as information only 🙂:

Due of the safety of all concerned, it is super wise to have a clear policy that includes pre-approval from the staff person's supervisor or HR. This policy may say that bringing a child to work is limited to emergency or short term 1-2 days, and they must remain under the parent/guardian's supervision at all times. 

Because a child has to "fit" the working environment, you may want to extend this offer to parents with older, self-directed children who can work quietly in the presence of the parent. Toddlers and infants require extra TLC a workplace without resources may not be able to safely provide.

As you've indicated, this privilege is restricted to particular areas of the museum and will exclude hazardous environments, collections/storage, public-facing, or other areas with safety concerns. To add to this, I'd restrict to non-public facing roles as the staff's primary responsibility is whole attunement to the guest. And if the guest happens to be a minor, there are even more liability concerns.

All this being said, a former colleague brought her child to work on the rare occasion for years, so we all got to see him grow up. Together they were an exemplar of how this can work. 

Krista Kusuma, MA (Art History, Education), CPCC, ACC (she/her)

Good afternoon, Kathy.

My first museum was the Heritage Center of Clark County, in Springfield, Ohio. Our archivist brought her children with her to work early on. They were almost our own mascots and getting a chance to see them grow up, albeit briefly, was a pure joy for us. I feel that it was a positive experience for the kids, being around a number of different adults all the time. As our archivist, she was very much in a customer service role, and I don't remember a time when having littles around caused enough distraction to warrant disallowing them. Finally, in my opinion, allowing this sort of informal benefit demonstrated that the facility cared strongly about its staff, which in turn encouraged greater morale and loyalty. Having said that though, there are very real considerations of liability and perceived fairness.   

I will suggest that you call the Heritage Center, (937-324-0657), ask to speak with the archivist, and tell her that Mel sent you.

Dear Krista,

Thank you for the thoughtful response. What you shared aligns with what we have been doing for a few years, though without a formal policy. You also added an excellent point about why this would not work for public-facing roles. Very helpful towards drafting a policy (which our legal team will review). 

Dear Kathy, thank you for raising this question here! Balancing the demands of family and career is such a struggle, but it's encouraging to think workplaces are strategizing around the tug-and-pull.

I can offer the perspective of someone who received accommodations, and helped shape accommodations for staff, though I'm now independent. Also, in the spirit of transparency, I am not a legal representative and offer the following as information only 🙂:

Due of the safety of all concerned, it is super wise to have a clear policy that includes pre-approval from the staff person's supervisor or HR. This policy may say that bringing a child to work is limited to emergency or short term 1-2 days, and they must remain under the parent/guardian's supervision at all times. 

Because a child has to "fit" the working environment, you may want to extend this offer to parents with older, self-directed children who can work quietly in the presence of the parent. Toddlers and infants require extra TLC a workplace without resources may not be able to safely provide.

As you've indicated, this privilege is restricted to particular areas of the museum and will exclude hazardous environments, collections/storage, public-facing, or other areas with safety concerns. To add to this, I'd restrict to non-public facing roles as the staff's primary responsibility is whole attunement to the guest. And if the guest happens to be a minor, there are even more liability concerns.

All this being said, a former colleague brought her child to work on the rare occasion for years, so we all got to see him grow up. Together they were an exemplar of how this can work. 

Krista Kusuma, MA (Art History, Education), CPCC, ACC (she/her)