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Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
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Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Re: I need job advice. Calling the PCE brain trust
Ditto. The videoconferencing thing is the kicker for me. I'm so sorry, missusbee.
<a href="http://www.thenest.com/?utm_source=ticker&utm_medium=HTML&utm_campaign=tickers" title="Home DAnything you can achieve through hard work, you could also just buy.
There are limits to how much they need to accommodate you, even for breastfeeding. Especially if travel is an integral part of your job. I think you're pushing it w/r/t the travel request.
I would suggest pumping like a mo fo and storing extra as needed. You could probably pick up a portable cooler for storing anything you pump on the road.
Exactly. Let them tell you you don't have a case. Or, if you do, deal with that azzhole properly.
Anything you can achieve through hard work, you could also just buy.
That's the part that pisses me off the most. If there was no videoconferencing center, then I would make travel and BFing work if I were missusbee. What I would really love to know is if there are other employees who have requested to use the equipment instead of travel and whether their requests were approved.
<a href="http://www.thenest.com/?utm_source=ticker&utm_medium=HTML&utm_campaign=tickers" title="Home DAnything you can achieve through hard work, you could also just buy.
Even if it did, as someone who's railed against my former company's mommies-first attitudes, I'd be more than happy to cover for a short time period for this situation. What I didn't like about my company was that it was standing policy for any parent in any situation (that they didn't travel, pretty much ever, b/c they had kids). This is entirely different.
Unfortunately, denying your travel request isn't doing anything illegal, since it's part of your job description. I can even envision situations where I'd be Team Company on it, but from this, it just sounds like the guy is being a jerk, so that really sucks, and I'm sorry.
FWIW, I had to travel quite a few times when BFing my kids. If at all possible, DH and the kids came with me, because it made it a lot easier (only had to pump during the day when I was away, not day and night). I have to stay gov't rate as well, and I was always able to find a hotel that had a mini-fridge option. Often even if it doesn't come standard with the room, you can request one either free or at a minimum charge.
If the kids didn't travel with me, I brought a collapsible cooler. You do not have to pump and dump, it is very possible (at least for shorter trips) to bring the BM back on the plane. BM keeps for up to a week refrigerated, so if the trip is shorter than that it's still good when you come back. Print out a copy of the FAA regulations to have going through security, but you can bring the milk through, baby or no. The trick is usually the cooling part. I never had a problem bringing through refreezable packs, but the trick then is getting the hotel to freeze them for you before you come back. Alternative is to go through security and get ice from a food vendor on the other side. Longer than a week I always dumped the early part of the trip, but I know people that had the hotel freeze it for them if the flight back wasn't too long. If you drive on trips, the best thing is a cooler that plugs into the DC socket in the car, one with an AC adapter so you can just bring it into the hotel.
As PP said, a lot of people are more cognizant of BFing than before, so it's generally not too huge a headache to bring it up to get accomodation to pump.
Supply can be an issue for some people pumping 24 hours a day. Fenugreek works like the bomb for me with supply issues. Also get the absolute best pump you can afford.
I'm sorry, the situation sounds like it sucks, but travel isn't impossible while BFing. GL!!
I still wonder if you could do something like fake flu symptoms and ask that to spare your clients from your illness you teleconference instead, when the time comes, ofcourse.
But I'm sneaky like that.
When you were talking to him about your alternative to travel strategy, did you point out the cost-savings of less travel, more video conferencing? Sorry if this is an obvious question but to me, it seems a no brainer to a jackass like this - less travel = more profit.
my read shelf:
Honestly, here's the advantage to lawyering up, and lawyering up now.
It sounds to me like this guy is in process of making your life miserable. And it's only going to get worse. Like, a lot worse. A lot. He doesn't like that you dared to make a baby while you were working for him, and he's p!ssed about it. And, it sounds like his attitude toward women who work for him is "cute" to begin with. So, yeah.
I'm telling you, it's not going to get better. It's going to get worse.
If you lawyer up now, a good lawyer will be able to help things not get worse. A good lawyer, one who knows her schitt, will have strategies for these situations, that may well save your job, and make it so you don't have to file a lawsuit.
Oh, and EEOC wouldn't have jurisdiction in this case, too few employees. You'd need to contact MCAD.
I am the 99%.
I think you have a lot of good advice in this response.
I've used those for my kids epi-pens when we went to Mexico. I don't think they would keep milk cold enough.
I think there is a lot of good logistic advice in this thread (admittedly I skimmed much of it).
My advice would be to document everything in case something happens and to start looking for a new job. You may have to stick it out for a while until you find something, but your boss sounds awful and like he's not going to get any more family friendly as the years go on. I'm sure there will be many other things you don't want to miss with your child and it doesn't sound like you'll have much say in scheduling around them or having an otherwise flexible schedule.