Work n’ Wear
The staff at the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) in the state of
“I brought my baby to work since he was two months old and up until he was 11 months,” said
“I would always get comments like, ‘Oh! Your baby is so good,’ and ‘You are so lucky to have such a good baby,’” said Rane. “Many would ask me if he was comfortable in the sling, if the sling hurt my back, or if my son would ever learn to crawl and walk, since he spent so much time in the sling. But I was never concerned. I did what I thought was the best for my baby. (Did I mention that he started to crawl at 8 months and was walking by his first birthday?) The added bonus was that I lost all of my baby weight within a year!”
Ohio WIC staff, including peer counselors (peer counselors are known as peer helpers in
“I am a peer helper and had the wonderful experience of bringing my daughter to work with me from the time she was 3 months old until she was 10 months old,” said Laurie DeVivo. “She was with me in the office while I made phone calls, counseled clients, taught classes, and even attended WIC Symposium in Spring 2006! By wearing my daughter in a sling I was able to perform my regular duties while still meeting her needs. This was actually a great way to truly model the ease of babywearing, breastfeeding and attachment parenting form my clients. It was great when she wanted to be fed; my clients could see how convenient it really was! It also provided an opportunity for conversation about the concerns people have with bringing a baby to work. As a mother, I felt more relaxed and productive at work than I might have, had I been separated from my baby. My co-workers enjoyed having her at the office. And because she was breastfed and ‘attached’ she was a very happy, content baby (and is now a very happy, well-adjusted 2 ½ year old).”
One comment from a co-worker of Rane’s speaks volumes about the experience of bringing babies to work—“Watching you makes me want to have a baby of my own!”
Kudos to Ohio WIC for practicing what they preach and showing others that breastfeeding can be good for babies, business, and the bottom line.
For more information about the Work n’ Wear program contact Ohio WIC
Just to clarify, it is up to the local WIC grantee agency as to whether or not wearing baby to work is allowed – not the Ohio WIC program. Not all Ohio WIC grantee agencies allow employees to bring their baby to work.
Hopefully the success demonstrated at Ashtabula County WIC will encourage other agencies to consider allowing its employees to wear their babies to work.
I think this is a wonderful program! I work from home, but wear my baby also, and love it.
I think it sounds like a wonderful program. However it would not have worked for my baby. I wore him around a lot, but he would only tolerate it if I was in motion. Sitting at a desk with him was never an option, and even with the sling he was still a bit of a crier. My attempts to take him to classes in a sling were unsuccessful. I think its great to have this program and I hope more places pick it up, but I don’t know if it would work for all mother-baby pairs!
I couldn’t agree more. One size certainly does not fit all. What we needs are LOTS of options.