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> sent a message to his team letting them know he would probably be “getting bugged more” by his kids due to his wife’s new high-level job I don't get how this

> sent a message to his team letting them know he would probably be “getting bugged more” by his kids due to his wife’s new high-level job I don't get how this was supposed to work. He's just putting his employer before the fact that he is going to be working less hours for same pay? Or I'm misinterpreting and it's supposed to mean something else? Why didn't he ask for paternity leave or didn't try to negotiate for a different schedule?

cldellow 6y ago
I think the most charitable read of the article is that he was not actually working less hours for the same pay. My read was: - he alleges his productivity didn't change - his availability changed due to the unpredictability of his children's needs, but "he always made up the time he spent helping his sons, he said" - he believed this was OK: "especially considering messages from upper management noting that parents with school-aged children shouldn’t be penalized" - he alleges his direct manager was unresponsive to his communication about the change in his personal circumstances -- one imagines that he was hoping she would work with him to figure out a path forward that worked for all parties These are just claims in a lawsuit that are yet to be tested in court. It seems to me like it's quite possible three things are true: (1) Wayfair had the right to fire him, (2) Wayfair shouldn't have fired him, and (3) even if they should have fired him, they handled it poorly.
Grustaf 6y ago
I had the same thought. Are you really legally entitled to simply changing your working hours like that? Here in Scandinavia you probably are, but probably not in the US.
- db48x 6y ago
  It greatly depends on the industry, the specific company, and the specific language of your employment contract. As an engineer I've never worked at any company that required a strict daily schedule and if any of my employers had tried to hold me to one I would have either quit on the spot or let them fire me, depending on my mood. A lot of my colleagues have been perfectly fine with a regular 9-5 schedule though; I value flexibility, but it's not everyone's first priority.
- TheCoelacanth 6y ago
  I believe typically not, but if you gave that freedom to other employees and then didn't in this scenario, you might be running afoul of laws against discriminating based on family status.

cldellow 6y ago

I think the most charitable read of the article is that he was not actually working less hours for the same pay. My read was: - he alleges his productivity didn't change - his availability changed due to the unpredictability of his children's needs, but "he always made up the time he spent helping his sons, he said" - he believed this was OK: "especially considering messages from upper management noting that parents with school-aged children shouldn’t be penalized" - he alleges his direct manager was unresponsive to his communication about the change in his personal circumstances -- one imagines that he was hoping she would work with him to figure out a path forward that worked for all parties These are just claims in a lawsuit that are yet to be tested in court. It seems to me like it's quite possible three things are true: (1) Wayfair had the right to fire him, (2) Wayfair shouldn't have fired him, and (3) even if they should have fired him, they handled it poorly.

Grustaf 6y ago

I had the same thought. Are you really legally entitled to simply changing your working hours like that? Here in Scandinavia you probably are, but probably not in the US.

db48x 6y ago
It greatly depends on the industry, the specific company, and the specific language of your employment contract. As an engineer I've never worked at any company that required a strict daily schedule and if any of my employers had tried to hold me to one I would have either quit on the spot or let them fire me, depending on my mood. A lot of my colleagues have been perfectly fine with a regular 9-5 schedule though; I value flexibility, but it's not everyone's first priority.
TheCoelacanth 6y ago
I believe typically not, but if you gave that freedom to other employees and then didn't in this scenario, you might be running afoul of laws against discriminating based on family status.