Irish parents confess to work woes as a result of ill children

A survey carried out by Nurofen in order to mark National Baby Day has revealed that many parents face criticism from employers or colleagues when forced to miss work in order to care for an ill child.

The study revealed that more mothers than fathers take time off work to look after an unwell child, but nearly half of all parents surveyed said they would stay at home if a child became unwell.

However this decision is not without its implications, with almost a quarter of parents surveyed admitting that deciding to stay at home to care for their offspring is frowned upon by their employer.

Further to this, over half of the parents who took part in the survey admitted that colleague's perceptions of their time off is a major concern in the decision-making process.

Worried that they may be perceived as unreliable influences a parent's decision to stay at home with a sick child, but almost three quarters of those surveyed said they have missed more than two days of work a year in order to care for their children.