In 2016, Jillian Bishop gave birth to her baby daughter. Ten weeks early.
She and her husband had not yet finalized their child care plans. Additionally, Jillian spent two months of her maternity leave in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) with her premature daughter, Savannah.
Figuring out child care plans was a struggle. “I obviously didn’t want to quit my job, but she needed me,” Jillian said. And her family couldn’t afford for either parent to stay home.
That’s when Heather Bell, vice president of Electronic Imaging Materials, offered the solution. Heather, a member of the Impact Monadnock Business Ambassadors (IMBA), had heard about the benefits of offering a Babies at Work policy, and was considering instituting it at her company. She reached out to Jillian to see if she’d like to be the first to use it.
"The ability to take her to work just really helped me deal with parenting anxiety,” Jillian said.
The company worked with Jillian to work out logistics, such as having a co-worker as a designated back-up care provider and establishing a new office space where the baby wouldn’t distract other co-workers.
As for Jillian, she already loved her job at EIM, but the family-friendly culture at the company has increased her loyalty to her employer.
"I have no interest in going anywhere else,” she said. Babies at Work policies are an example of the family-friendly workplace practices encouraged by IMBA, a group of business leaders working with MUW’s early childhood initiative, Impact Monadnock.