Babies in the Office

I agree with you, Mr. Trump. I wouldn't want to be in an office with anything remotely resembling a baby, and prefer not to talk on the phone with one crying in the background.

I have a 4 1/2 month old baby and am earning my MBA online while working full time. It's been difficult enough to do school work in the evening or on the weekends when my husband is there as another pair of hands to parent the baby. I can't imagine having her at work with me and being productive. I'm very impressed with anyone who can pull it off. It seems to me that other people's babies would be less mentally distracting but more annoying.

The business of raising a child takes a village says some, yet in our culture we have placed this task in the hands of many unskilled and untrained people who do not understand the needs of early childhood. Business is business, I understand your point of view, but being sensible and inovative about the needs of the newborn and the bonds of mother and child at each critical stage of the journey seems a critical social issue in our modern society. Women have many roles today, we have been told to be the object of sexual desire, we have been objectified, we are required to give life, mother of the life we bring into the world, then we are asked to part with that life, and turn it over to people who have little or no training in understanding children's needs at different stages of their development.
We are, as women torn at the very core as we look at our options, knowing that the journey towards selfhood often demands that we leave our children in the hands and care of people without the knowledge and training that we would like to see people have who care for our children. I stayed home with Hannah for the first 5 years of her life, this was the most amazing experience of my life, which is frankly why I have been such a absolute donkey about what has happened in the child custody case when I tried to leave her dad. It needs to matter, when a woman takes 5 years and dedicates herself to this process, the process lends itself to making better, more secure people, and when the courts or lawyers decide that this is not important after you have given up so much to make it happen it needs to be a matter of policy in board rooms! The truth is women have the womb, what would you have us do with it? If not for our ability to give birth there would be no workers in the first place, so there must be a understanding reached a value placed upon the role of the mother in our culture- mothers who abuse children have no respect from this author- but those who seek only to be a vital part of a childs life and TRY with everything they have to FIGHT back every attack on their life that keeps them from being a vital part of a childs life ought to have a special place in every work place- and the work place needs to adapt to the needs of humanity, not the other way around. Being senisble about the roles we must be available to play in the lives of our children and not letting stress and worry, and seperation divide us from being the people our children need must concern every business owner- in the long run there is no future for a company that has not considered the overall cost to society for all that they achieve, being a responsible corporation to me means that there is a place in every orginization for mothers- they have a unique ability to nurture us all- so since children can not tell strangers what they need or want companies must make it a mission to be sure that mothers are secure in knowing that children are safe, and cared for if they are to use their ability to nurture your company while out of the company of the newborn. Why not just let people on drugs sit at the desk and shoot up, why not just let people set up a washer and dryer by their desk and do a load of wash at work, why not let them run a rope around the office and hand up everything to dry,?
Well the reason is because there is a standard for business that we wish to see in the workplace, this is comfortable for most people who are in the working world- but there are many things that people can do from home, this piece of writing is a perfect example- I am working from home right now- there is no reason why I could not have a newborn right here by my side and still do this work. My point is, that if companies wanted to, they could be inovative - in so doing, it would cease to be a issue.
Best Regards,
Tammie

I absolutely agree with this one. The last thing I could deal with is a crying baby in the office.
Jan

BABIES in the SENATE
Or in the offices of government
I am not talking about the sort of babies that wear diapers I am talking about the type of babies that just don’t allow women to get a foot in the door, and there is a reason in my humble opinion. I recently decided that reason is because women don’t like to see people do a lot of things that men are willing to do in the quest for power. This includes but is not limited to the acts of war. If there were more mothers deciding what to do in the Senate we would have less war, this SCARES the living CRAP out of the WAR mongers that love to play with guns and make things go BOOM! The truth is women have a natural instinct to nurture and protect, and unless they can be trained to hate, and declare war against humanity they rarely are allowed to proceed to the places where decisions are made regarding policy that may impact social change. This includes policy on WAR, this includes policy on energy, and this includes policy on just about everything that serves only as instruments to hold down humanity in chains, or economic despair in the long run. Many of the choices made in history by the men in our leadership have been made against the counsel of women near them, despite the best advice a woman can bring to put down the guns and stop blowing stuff up men for some reason are just BABIES when it comes to listening to the advice of a woman on so many issues. We would be well advised, I think, to let a woman make more decisions for at least 4 years, maybe longer about the welfare and direction of our country, maybe we need the love of a mother to bring us out of the tail spin we have seemingly headed towards.
Mothers hate to see children suffer- women hate to see children without limbs, if you ever want to end a battle ask a woman to settle the score- make sure she is a mother- mothers understand the value of humanity and we need to trust them more with our country- it needs the love of a mother at this point!

I would put all babies in the office and all olders in the kindergarten.
Just for one week. To see what happened.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZUr65GvvJQQ

Ina Matijevic

When I read the title to the article I thought it was a satirical reference to today’s workforce and employee work ethic.

I would have never imagined it was about real babies!

I agree with Mr. Trump completely.

Babies deserve more attention than someone who is trying to focus on another job. One the best models for work-life balance that I have seen is company daycare. One employer (a hospital) offered a separate daycare just for sick children. Work-life balance is a struggle - there will always be compromises.

Jessica Bond

Tammie Lynn Coffey makes the statement that "women are required to give life...". Ah hem...no we are not. Not sure what century she's living in, and I'm sorry for her travails, but women have plenty of choices. Yet although an unfortunate side effect of the feminist movement, women's belief that they could have it all is now being replaced w/ the more realistic notion that you just have to make choices. Traditionally, men never had the option of being hands on dads and simultaneously bringing home the bacon; why should women? The fact that more men are becoming work at home/stay at home dads is a better outcome from the feminist movement. If you think, male or female, that bringing your baby to work is better for your company, for you, and for your baby, you should quit and work from home. "Women are required to give life..." ! what rubbish! Just like everything else in life, the choice has its consequences. Thanks to Mr. Trump for taking a stand on this. He's not The Donald for nothing!
I think in-house daycare services is a much better option than having Baby by your desk. This benefit to employees would pay for itself, if not provide a profit center. Employees could jot down on their break/lunch to check on Baby and then return to work w/out a guilty conscience.

The is the absolute WORST IDEA I've heard in a very long time! Get real, people! If anything, this is another way for women to take advantage and get attention for themselves. I know a lot of women who have babies for accessories -- everybody loves a baby, but everybody doesn't necessarily love the women who give birth to them. Sorry ladies... it takes a lot more than a cute baby to change a witch into a princess.

This titty-baby stuff has got to stop. I have observed that overly-doting mothers usually raise wimpy kids. These are the poor guys who never cut the cord, and, can never have a fulfilling relationship with a woman, because they don't want to upset mommy. Seems like some women think that they "own" their kids. That's a whole other topic that I'll refrain from spewing about at the moment. In short, kids will survive if they are separated from their working mommies for eight hours in the day. If the moms hate it so much...they should have married a guy wealthy enough that they could stay home with the kid. Or, they should have chosen not to have a kid. Everyone doesn't have to have a baby to be fulfilled. There are too many people who have children, who are so emotionally retarded, that they shouldn't have reproduced in the first place.

And, if you want to be home with baby, but still have a career...start your own business! Don't put that crap on someone else and their place of business. That is so disrespectful!

As for women making all of the decisions...was a little nicer when they did it in private. How far must women go to completely emasculate men? Women have always held the key to power, we just have to know when and how to use it. The trick is to have that silent power, and allow the one with the balls to carry it through. Men were not born with a womb and breasts...they're not supposed to be mush-melons! Honest to God...why don't people get it? The birds and the bees? The flowers and the trees?

As for the reason for most wars...WOMEN! What a load of crap that person wrote..."oh, if women were in charge...the world would be such a harmonious place!" You've got to kidding me! Women are the most conniving, diabolical, ruthless people in the world! I have worked for both, men, and women...and, the bad men had horrible relationships with women...either their wives, or, their mothers, or both!

I was speaking to the security guard who works at my present office... the man has been working two jobs for 35 years...this, after serving in the military...rarely sleeps. But, you know what? This man NEVER complains...he just does it! He has conditioned himself to work as a machine, but is one of the kindest people in the world. That is sacrifice. And, women sacrifice, also...but, kids in the workplace? I think it sucks! Let kids grow up around kid stuff, and other kids...not in an office environment. That's so stupid! Robert (the sec.guy) and I were discussing how the roles of women and men have changed so much, and, how women want to have men's jobs and equal pay, and the works. And, that's fine, to an extent. But, what about the DIRTY JOBS?! How many of those jobs are women willing to do? They (I'm a woman, but I am not a feminist, obviously). This gentleman said, "Oh, yeah...they want all of the good jobs...but, how many women are going to get out there and build houses...work on cars...plumbers...be garbagewomen...dig ditches...invent wonderful household appliances for the home? Yeah, it's no wonder men get angry! No matter what, it's never enough! They work till their backs break, only to go home to a nagging wife who gets upset because Daddy isn't sweet and doting enough to the children! If I were a man, and, got stuck with a wife like that... I'd want to go out and shoot something...golf, or, drink myself to death. So, all things considered... I think that men do alright, for what they have to deal with!

Thinks are not easy like you said.
I love children. And I'm sure a lot of people love children or may think that reproduction is a gift from god. I know many women who have both happy family and a good job. But What did they do? How can they do that?
Of course bring children into our office is not a good choice. Sure that if we have infrants at offtice, we cant do things well. Children do not only sleep all day, what will they do when they get up and hungry? Let them keep crying or stop working? A VERY BAD DECISION!
Bringing up a child require both woman and man. At short time, you should choose one. Then you will have both in a long time.

I work in an office where we have an open door policy on babies. When a Mom needs to bring her baby to work- we love it. Everyone gets a smile as we take turns holding and cuddling the baby- and if the baby becomes too much of a distraction, the Mom is the first one to take the baby home.

Babies who are too young to crawl generally eat and sleep. When they are awake, they are easily amused with a baby swing or crib toys. A lot of our Moms work from their home during this critical period. But when we have meetings or events or need the Mom at work- then we love to have the baby there.

When my son was born, I did not have a baby-friendly office. My pediatrician warned me to keep my baby out of all-ages day care until he was 6 months old. Young babies do not have the immune system to cope with the demands of being in such a hot house of infection. My son had a compromised immune system because he nearly died in his first month. He warned that if I sent my son to day care, he would have non--stop ear infections for the first two years of his life. I begged my supervisor to allow me to work primarily from home, bringing the baby to work when necessary. They replied that I was too essential and if I wanted my job, I would return when my 6 weeks leave was over. My pediatricican's prophecy came true. Every week for two years, I needed to take the whole day off to get my son to the pediatrician- one day for the infection-two weeks on anti-biotics- one day for the follow-up- then 3 to 4 days later for the next ear infection. While he was in pain, there was no sleep for an entire night. He had chicken pox at age 1 year- you've never really experienced chicken pox until you;ve had a baby in diapers with chicken pox- yuck!

My son and I survived it- but I am in favor of doing whatever is necessary to help young mothers through those first critical six months. It helps that my group is predominantly young women of child-bearing age. We average about one baby a year in our group of about 10 women. When the women bring the babies to work- we love it- the babies become part of our family- and the Moms who have shared their babies with us tend to work for us for 5-10 years rather than the usual 2-3 years. Babies at work mean Moms that need less family sick leave, Moms that get more rest, have greater peace of mind, and more long-term employment. Sounds like a win-win situation.

Know from reading her book, that Carolyn brought her baby to work when necessary when she was working for you. One day, you were meeting with her, you heard the baby, you stopped- played with the child for a few minutes and you both went back to work. That is the reality of babies at work. If you haven't tried it- maybe you should. If you want female employees, then babies at work is good business. If you don't want female employees, then your business will simply not be as successful. It takes all kinds of ability to run a business- and women- especially young women- bring a needed vitality and ability to multi-task effectively. Those companies that are working hard to meet the needs of young working mothers are going to be more successful in the long run.

Babies in the office can either be a motivator or a distractor.
It can work out either way.
Babies in the office could motivate the parent to work harder as the reason for bringing home money is just near by. On the other hand, babies are not easily controllable. You can't ask the baby to simply keep quiet or stop crying. This could be more of a distraction rather than a reason to work harder. I would definitely agree if employers provide a special facility at the work place to keep babies in a special room while parents do work. Employees with babies should be allowed to peek into the room where the babies are kept and the room should be safe with a baby sitter in the room to keep an eye on everyone.

Regards,
Prince Dudley,
Systems Engineer
http://birdseyesview.blogspot.com

Both my sons learned the importance that money was number one for our survival and freedom at an early age. I worked from home since they were babies, in order to raise them by myself.
Working around a baby, takes a smart routine and working smart, than hard. I would power dial and prioritize, talk on the cell while at the park or grocery store...
They understood to be very quiet when I was on the phone for business, respected the art of the deal and the pay day that followed. Their participation made them feel that they were part of a force and the celebrations of those big commission cheques were like their own achievement.
They were taken to important meetings, but sitting quietly in lobbies with little suits and gelled hair.
At home, everyone co-operated as a team, especially when 'mom was doing an important deal'.
They understood when I was exhausted, exasperated and exhilerated, and certainly our family bond was enhanced with such detailed communications of the daily dealings.
Some of my older son's friends still do not know what their parents do for a living...I find that so surreal!

Hello fellow browsers,

Perhaps if the "mothers" in the workforce, insist on babies being kept at the work place and not at the office crèche (day care centre), someone needs to speak to them from their point of view.

?Exposing a baby to the germs in the workplace (your next door cubicle neighbour with a sneezing fit) isn’t the most suitable place;
Nor are the fine particles that rise from the printer or photocopier;
The baby could also get injured what with thick books, staplers, pins etc all lying around;
Perhaps it would be better to permit the mother to take frequent breaks for visits to the crèche

Remember this is a negotiation and a tough one at that, thus it is vital to think from the "mothers" point of view and at the same time avoid having a bawling baby at the workplace.
Best
Lubna

Company daycare seems more reasonable. This wasn't a real story, was it?

I hear you : )

Non the less, the thought comes: What would happen if a company would go yet one step further and hired say... For every 12 babies, 4 specialists who would be in charge of changing diapers, picking up crying babies, lolling them to sleep, bringing them up to the mom's breast -when appropriate.

Babies would be happy, well tended and thus much less crying. Parents would be thrilled and grateful/pampered. The company would create more jobs: Baby specialists... Not too expensive, very productive/rewarding. Other childless co-workers would be working at ease and pleased.

And, to avoid "discrimination/preference" the child-less sector would be delivered popsicles or tea or coffee cups every so often : )

How about that?

It just matters to me because of the importance of BABIES.

We may choose to have them or not... But if we do have them...They become what we call "the FUTURE" (and that new society begins exactly at pregnancy/babyhood) Closeness to caring adults (preferably parents) is VITAL for them to grow as a healthy society..

Would looove to read your thoughts on this : )

Always love, light and laughter;

Leticia Huber
www.GetAwayToHubersINNPortTownsend.com

I don't think babies belong in an office environment. It doesn't look very professional.

I have NOT revisited this post since I posted- I just caught up- MY EYES are as big as the FULL MOON right now reading all the CONFLICT that came pouring out of us on this issue! I just had no idea we had so much to talk about on this issue! WOW what an EDUCATION! I think I need to vomit first, then get laid, then take a nap, and hold a new baby before I reply- I am SO SCARED of how MUCH CONFLICT we have over the role of women, with babies- WOW this is so cool, yet so upsetting to learn that my complex ROLE in society is not just in my imagination rather it is EVIDENCED here with all that you have recorded! DO YOU UNDERSTAND what women are up against in this culture? We have a womb- no doubt about that- the questions about what to do with it- and what you will CALL us after we have done it- are clearly complex!
The social bias, of the female roles, must I believe be identified if we are to clarify the actual issue on the table. The anger felt by the woman who has achieved a life in her role in business towards the womb she denied is something we can ignore or we can acknowledge- Also, the woman who tries to achieve the standard of mom, and business woman only to earn the respect of half of anyone she runs into can also be ignored, or acknowledged. The real TRUTH is not personal, it is cultural, and biological- in that men can not HAVE babies (yet) so this role is still by default the duty/task of the womb in REALITY- (by the way that is the world I live in- in response to the inquiry) As far as I know men can not have babies- maybe in NY they can, but I have not met many here that can- so while this continues to REST on the female lets not fail to understand that there are just as many WHACKED dudes out there who want to "play" house just for the sake of SHAMING the female that they TAKE the child FROM- now, relax and breath- this too is a spill over of our complex yet undefined roles in society for family- a population of men have come into existence with very EVIL intent that PLANT "seed" then DESTROY the woman BECAUSE "they want to prove" that THEY can do "it better" (most are gender confused) OR HAVE VERY SERIOUS mental issues- a need to play act the role of the mom or act this out, to many in that population is in most every case a way to resolve a conflict- (they resolve this conflict at the great expense of innocent children and unknowing women who end up having children with them) - its crazy that such a sub-culture came to pass- but it did! So, what do we do about babies in the workplace? I am still trying to figure out what to do with ****S who TAKE children for the SAKE of the working out the conflict that they were born with a vagina that is enclosed (for example)- once I figure that one out, maybe I will be able to move forward- still stuck on WHY we allow much of any of the crap we do allow WITHOUT QUESTION regarding our children in this culture! We need to ASK- and WE need to QUESTION- this is awesome! Once I finish vomiting- I will try this again- this one is hard on my inner sense of selfhood- it demands a pause at this point-

Dear Mr. Trump,

one of my big joys as being a small child ... bigger than the baby status, it was to spend a day at my parents' work places. Of course, any exageration can decrease the corporate status of a big company, but, if such an idea is well planned and extremely carefully put in place "the apprentice" style can be a successful one.

Adrian Niculescu
www.myspace.com/adiniculescu

Well Mr. Trump, I guess that would depend on what kind of business you were in and the culture of the business. For example, I imagine Gerber would want lots of babies around for product testing, and babies are always welcome if you are running a daycare. As a mother and a grandmother, I never wanted crying babies around. When we were in public and they chose to cry, I took them to a private place so they weren't disturbing others. That would be counter-productive on the job. On-site daycare is a great perk. Babies on desks sounds like it would only work in very flexible environments.