Babies in the Workplace

It is critical that a company specify that work still needs to get done, both by parents and by coworkers. If this is made clear up front, issues should be minimal. However, companies need to be willing to discuss issues as needed if individuals aren't behaving appropriately (such as by spending hours playing with babies instead of working). When parents know that this is a requirement, they are highly responsive to their babies and they learn more efficient ways to do their jobs, which have long-term benefits for businesses and for families.

Many companies specify that a parent's first responsibility is to their baby. This works well in conjunction with the "work needs to get done" provision, because parents instinctively respond to their babies' whimpers and meet their needs before the babies get to the point of full-blown distress. This means that the babies are happier overall, there is much less potential disruption due to crying, and the parents have more time available to get their work done since their babies are happy just being close to their parents and observing other people.