Since 2015, infants up to the age of six months have been welcome in the workplace at Spokane Regional Health District (SRHD). Back then, current SRHD Chapter President Katie Rand advocated for the progressive policy when she had a newborn and was facing the dilemma so many working parents face — wanting to continue working but grappling with the reality of costly childcare and losing one-on-one time with a new baby. Fortunately, SRHD was in agreement that having infants in the workplace is possible and should be encouraged, especially at a public health agency focused on fostering a community of healthy and happy families.

In the years since, SRHD has gone through some tumultuous times, with Health District leadership experiencing major turnover; multiple Administrative Officers (the agency head) leaving amidst investigations, misconduct, and conflict; a Health Officer being terminated at the height of the pandemic; and threats to privatize Washington’s largest public opioid treatment clinic. SRHD staff have been in survival mode anxiously waiting for the next regime change; not knowing who they would be reporting to next week; and living in a culture of fear of what might come next.

Despite being surrounded by uncertainty, PROTEC17 members began advocating for an update to Infants in the Workplace policy due to a wave of new babies being born and new parents questioning the old policy. One mom who had been bringing her infant to work was facing a looming deadline with her baby turning six months old — normally a happy milestone, but one that meant she would no longer be allowed to bring him to work with her. Another mom had been told she could not work from home while caring for her child since the policy barred it on the grounds that “working from home is not a replacement for childcare.”

At a Labor Management Committee meeting, President Rand and other member leaders advocated for an update to the policy that would not punish parents for simply working from home or for their child reaching six months of age.

This year, the new Administrative Officer, Danny Scalise, has come on board at SRHD and instituted an open-door policy with a willingness to make changes at an agency whose unofficial slogan had been “we do it that way because we’ve always done it that way”. Scalise has invited union members to come and talk to him to share their past experiences, recommend improvements, pitch ideas, and foster in a new era of collaboration. 

One of his first actions was to start up a new Policy Committee focused on reviewing existing Health District policies and finding areas for improvement. Rand was nominated to be the PROTEC17 voice on the committee, and she immediately got to work on Infants in the Workplace policy. 

Within days, management had agreed to extend the policy and eliminate the disparate treatment of parents working from home. Now, parents can bring infants up to the age of 12 months in to work with them; or care for them while working from home without fear of retribution. Thanks to Rand’s advocacy and experience as a union leader, along with a friend in management, new parents working at SRHD can rest assured that they can continue to support their families and their communities, without sacrificing important bonding time with their babies