Babies don’t belong at work

Chris says:

08:33am | 19/06/09

“Hello ladies and gentlemen this is the captain speaking, no need for alarm but we’re coming in to some extremely rough weather so please return to your seats immediately and buckle up because it’s going to get pretty hairy up here and it’s crucial to the safety of all passengers that the co-pilot and I devote all of our attention to… ah coochie coochie coo. Ahhhhhh coochie coochie coo! Oh you are so cute! You are so cute I could just eat you! Er, sorry folks, my wife just brought in my little ten month old Jasper and, oh you just gotta see this kid. Really, he’s just divine. Uh… ok where were we again?”

DD says:

08:38am | 19/06/09

I could not agree with you more but once again what applies to the rest of us doesn’t seem to apply to politicians

Andrea says:

09:04am | 19/06/09

Absolutely, you are at work to do work, not to be baby-sitting, and it is no different being a senator to a bus driver, accounts officer or a scientist.  You cannot being doing your job and looking after a child and being doing a good job at both.

Geoff says:

09:06am | 19/06/09

If the senator was taking the child into the office then I would see no problem but takinging the child into chamber would be like me taking my three year old into a board meeeting - just inappropriate.

Marina Go says:

09:08am | 19/06/09

I couldn’t agree with you more. I am a working mother and have been a full- time member of the Australian workforce for all of my boys’ lives. They are now aged 15 and 11. Sure it would have been great if I could have taken them to work with me, especially when they were little and dropping them at day care was so tough (emotionally, and mostly for me). However, it would have been inappropriate for me to do so. I was at work to do a job and so the thought of putting my child to sleep in the corner of my office never crossed my mind. It is tough to be a working mum - and sometimes gut-wrenching too. And I feel for working mothers with young children (especially, but not exclusively), all the time. But you’re at work to do a job and the contract between you and your employer asumes that you will do it to the best of your ability, with minimum distraction. And that’s why women (and men) shouldn’t take their kids to work unless it’s designated kids-at-work day.

D says:

09:08am | 19/06/09

We all know what you get paid.  You can afford childcare or a baby sitter… especially for 5 min while the house votes.  You think you were humiliated, spare a thought for the people who voted you in. Surely you knew the responsibility you were taking on when you stood for election.

Andrew says:

09:11am | 19/06/09

Why should she be able to bring her kid to work? Most other work places don’t allow it.

Angelina says:

09:15am | 19/06/09

This is almost as bad as entering your child into a beauty pageant.

Only with a much uglier and uptight audience.

W says:

09:16am | 19/06/09

Go and a Baby sitter like everyone else . Who do you think you are, my kids cant come to work with me, so i pay alot of money to have them looked after, you should do the same.

Joshua White says:

09:18am | 19/06/09

They’re getting their snouts into the trough earlier and earlier under ever-more absurd pretenses.  Next thing you know all the   yobbos in the house will want their obscene pay and perks delivered via a tit too. Why   does the idiot electorate   continue to elect politicians?
I’m going somewhere sane, like Zimbabwe!

Jane says:

09:21am | 19/06/09

It’s typical of the ‘Greens’ mentality really isn’t it? Social engineers. The breakdown of society by flouting rules and regulations…..and challenging authority with assuming ‘anything is ok’. A world without rules and regulations is chaos. You are completely out of line here Senator. You mis-judged the community’s level of deterioted standards - thinking you would be supported in this. It’s NOT ON. ‘Kora kicked out’...and so she should be…she should never have put her in the wrong position in the first place!! If you have a job that demands irregular hours? Then make appropriate arrangements if you have children, deal with it…or resign. Do not use parliament for childcare if you have failed to make alternate arrangements. We don’t need to hear heart-tugging stories about how she felt when the child was taken from her. She should have thought of that BEFORE she wrongfully took her in…..and no doubt she already did and forced this situation to make a point. It backfired.

Aaron says:

09:22am | 19/06/09

Kids don’t belong at work. Your employer does not pay you to look after your child. You go to work. TO WORK. This woman should be given a written warning and the people who voted for her, should realise that she doesn’t take her job seriously. This is a no-brainer.

Working mum says:

09:22am | 19/06/09

I couldn’t agree with you more - unless you work at a child care centre children do not belong in the workplace. I have a one year old and wouldn’t dream of bringing her to work, not only would she be bored but my ability to perform my job would be dramatically reduced. But once again, politicians seem to be completely out of touch with reality.

Darryl says:

09:23am | 19/06/09

Get off your high horse. If SH-Y was so concerned about who was looking after her daughter she would have left the chamber with her. She made that choice. If only there were options, SH-Y wouldn’t need to make a Political football of her child. Waaait a minute there are!!!!
Poor decision making from an elected, representative decision maker.

John says:

09:24am | 19/06/09

Green twit! I along with a majority of the working population with kids have to find child minding facilities for them. They certainly aren’t allowed in the work place.

iansand says:

09:26am | 19/06/09

This is a child protection issue.  That toddler will be scarred for life after having been exposed to the childish behaviour of our parliamentarians.

Think of the children.

Dave says:

09:27am | 19/06/09

What next?  Let the kids press the voting buttons?  breastfeeding at the dispatch box.  The fact is parliament house is a place of work and not only should children not be allowed in the senate chambers, as a matter of normal practice they should not be allowed in the building.  As the writer points out one of the nations best childcare centres is available for free nearby.

Nettie says:

09:27am | 19/06/09

Am a mother myself,  I love my children and love them being with me. But there are places that it is just NOT appropriate. Children in the Chamber is a no no. Inappropriate and if this is how she expects to conduct her motherhood, then dont be a Senator. Plenty of other options available to her. She should respect the Chamber not make it open slather to children.

Barry Gisbourne says:

09:28am | 19/06/09

I note that many others have mentioned the example of female pilots and the need for them to be concentrating on their job. No babies in cockpits please. No babies in our parliaments either.

I just thought the Senator to be an airhead that was grandstanding and if distressed by this minor matter clearly unfit for office.

Disgusted says:

09:31am | 19/06/09

A complete political stunt! Just another way for the greens to try and put pressure on the ALP. Unfortunately it appears politicians will even stoop as low as using their own children for political gain.

Jan says:

09:34am | 19/06/09

I couldn’t agree more.  Taking her child into her private office is one thing, but taking it into the chamber is akin to me bringing my children into a work meeting - completely unacceptable.  What surprises me is the hullabaloo surrounding this.  She shouldn’t have assumed that it was permissable in the first place.

Jen says:

09:38am | 19/06/09

This is discrimination, if she is allowed to bring her child in why cant all the other people in parliment bring in their children. Kids dont belong at work, how can you effectively work with a child interupting you? I think she really needs to consider if she wants to work or look after her child full-time.

I agree with Andrea we cant take a child to work if we are a bus driver.. but hang on why not a prision guard or police officer or even a nurse.

Would there be any difference if a father brough his child into parliment?

KimberleyL says:

09:40am | 19/06/09

Babies should not be allowed in the workplace unless there is a creche or child minding facilities. Apart from disruption from the poor little mites crying (and why wouldn’t they, I’m sure a day at work with mum or dad is not fun for a tot) I’m sure it would diminish quality of work and focus of all in the office. I’m all for kids in the workplace kid dedicated area, but not where work should be taking place.

GMW of Perth says:

09:40am | 19/06/09

Dear Sarah
Your constituents deserve better!

phil says:

09:42am | 19/06/09

ive never been on this page before but i can see from the outset right wing hacks get over it you lost the election you are not born to rule johnnys gone and now has peter stop your sooking and get a life

sp says:

09:45am | 19/06/09

She should be embarrassed. I really can’t believe she expected sympathy. Why she was allowed into the chamber with the child in the first place is absolutely beyond me??

Josh says:

09:46am | 19/06/09

If she cannot manage organising day care for her child why is she a senator?

Jay Stone says:

09:46am | 19/06/09

Sarah, if you can’t bear to be away from your baby, resign and stay at home with her!

jg_rat says:

09:50am | 19/06/09

Marble sandpit? Sounds dangerous.

Jonathan says:

09:53am | 19/06/09

Why should politicians be able to take their kids to work, especially when they have a subsidised child-care centre on the premesis?
Women wonder why they are ‘disadvantaged’ at work, well, it’s because they ALWAYS have issues.  They wan’t equal pay etc. but they also want work / life balance, maternity leave, carer’s leave, somewhere at work for their kids, time off for this and that and, on top of all that, they also need their support networks so they can function.
Parliament is no place for kids, you are there to do a job.  If you can’t even organise something simple, like daycare for your kid, one would have to question your ability to make decisions of national importance.

sarah says:

09:54am | 19/06/09

I totally agree with her being thrown out.
If you choose to work, then do what the rest of us have to do and get a baby sitter. It costs me $300.00 per week to have my child in care. My boss would fire me if I took my kid to work. I have a job to do and my work place (the same as everyone else’s) is not a place for children

Robert of Flemington says:

09:55am | 19/06/09

Trust the Greens

Johnny says:

09:56am | 19/06/09

Now that the senator herself is bring all this up: where was the child’s father?

neil says:

09:57am | 19/06/09

Yay, I can bring my kids to work! Can I bring my cats too? They get sooo lonely. Bob Brown you’ve lost it. Polical correctness gone completely mad.

John Kennedy says:

09:58am | 19/06/09

Because most of the respondents have had negative management who don’t allow children in the workplace then we should just roll over and accept it. The idea of having a child in the workplace is relative to the workplace. Many years ago politicians would not allow women in Parliament because they were deemed to distracting. Now we have people who openly admit that they cant do their job because a two year old distracts them and we accept that as being reasonable. This reflects badly on them not the mother or the child. Was the child crying? Or even making a noise? Apparently not! Other pathetic women who give the weakest excuse that they were never allowed to take their children to work are simply condoning bad behavior by management. They are admitting that they tolerated antiquated almost bigoted behavior and expecting others to acknowledge their sacrifice. You should have said something ladies and maybe the world would change for the better! Your ability to stagnate and accept the status quo makes me sick. Its a human rights issue!

LM says:

09:58am | 19/06/09

I have never been on this page either, thank god. Children should be allowed to be with their mothers, they have rights too.  It is sad day when all you people think that children are less important than making money.  Women have every right to take children to work, and workplaces should be open to flexibility.  In other less sexist countries, maternity leave is provided and mothers are encouraged to breast feed for longer.  YOu are all living in the past and as for that mother who had to leave her children at the child care and it was gut-wrenching, do you think that because you did it that it should stay that way? 

Hannah says:

09:58am | 19/06/09

goodness everyone settle down. The woman was called in for a vote she wasnt expecting. There wasnt anyone around to look after her two year old.
Come on, how many of you have bought your children into work, or seen children at work? It happens regularly when they called back from child care, or in an emergency ... granted not for the entire day but for an hour or two.
No wonder we don’t have many women in politics or high business positions with attitudes like that to children.
People need to be flexible!!

Gina Tassie says:

10:06am | 19/06/09

I vote Greens and I say this is totally inappropriate - and ridiculous! It smacks of elitism. Can you imagine if all the local Woolies checkout chicks took their babies to work? They can’t. Simple. They get paid to do a job and have to pay to have someone look after their littlies… Politicians - you are workers.  You get paid to work. Work, don’t babysit.

jon says:

10:07am | 19/06/09

You people all seem very worked up. Perhaps you need to relax more. It’s not like the kid was trying to pass retrospective legislation that would contravene the Declaration of Human Rights!! I mean THAT would be worth getting worked up about…

bo says:

10:10am | 19/06/09

phil says…nothing intelligent about the story/article in question.  sarah, make a choice, family or work! NORMAL Aussies make that choice daily and manage to juggle the two (even with the penalties imposed on them by you pollies). If you are incapable of fulfilling your role as an ELEECTED EMPLOYEE of the AUSTRALIAN VOTER, then you should consider stepping aside and letting someone who is more capable of doing so.

Evan says:

10:22am | 19/06/09

This is a typical illogical, knee-jerk communist attitude.  The work place is for work - not baby sitting.  Perhaps Senator Whatshername could have given the tacker to Comrade Capitalist Kev to mind - it would fill in his idle hours.  They get obscene pay and conditions for the work they do, especially the Greens who are an anachronism I’m afraid.  They serve no purpose but to bleed the electorate.  Senator Whatshername should make the decision:  A mum and devote her time to her toddler or a politician and do the job she’s paid for.  You can’t have it both ways.  Surely she gets paid enough to pay a baby sitter or are the Greens paid what they’re worth?

Narelle Tobin says:

10:23am | 19/06/09

Narelle of Brisbane says:
I am the mother of four children. I also have a profession and know how hard it can be to juggle working life with motherhood.  There is, however, a time and place for raising children and it is NOT at work where your focus should be on the task at hand.  If a decision is subsequently made in favour of allowing children into the Senate, imagine how many other children could be running around in the Chamber.  The entitlement would then flow on to the House of Reps.  Public Servants could argue they are entitled to bring their children to work and you can’t then discriminate in the private sector .  This should be a non issue.  This woman was elected to represent her constituency.  She is paid out of the public purse.  The rights and wrongs of whether the matter of the removal of the child was handled sensitively enough may be another issue, however, Senator Sarah Hanson-Young should not have created the situation in the first place.

Clem says:

10:27am | 19/06/09

There’s nothing strange about seeing children at the workplace, especially if the parent is only there to tie up some loose ends. In this case, to have a vote which was unexpected. And to compare the responsibilities of a senator with those of a pilot flying a plane is ludicrous. Save your frothing at the mouth for something important.

John Umstad says:

10:27am | 19/06/09

As an employer i do, yes do allow mothers..and..fathers to bring their children to work when they want, however we do provide a seperate room and play area and a minder to watch over them, the children are also allowed to interact with other staff. BUT they are not allowed to be any where near when we have meetings with staff, suppliers or customers, this is called commen sence and respect for others, additionally not all work places are suitable…....take prisons for example.

Boris Hilton says:

10:31am | 19/06/09

I am a friend of Sarah and I must say I am disappointed in you lot. I don’t suppose collecting all the facts before you criticise is out of the question?

First of all, childcare in Parliament is not subsidised by the taxpayer. It is also not available to children over the age of 18 months.
Secondly, Sarah does employ a full-time nanny, who was on a break at the time this happened. Sarah was saying goodbye to Kora when all this happened, and only had a few minutes to do so when suddenly the bells rang for a vote unexpectedly.
Thirdly, Kora was NOT crying or screaming. She was sitting quietly and only got upset when she was taken from her mother.
Fourthly, how could it be a stunt? Kora has been in the chamber before and it wasn’t a problem. Sounds more like another Labor stunt than anything Sarah could have organised.
And finally, the president has already regretted his actions and admitted he was over the top. So I guess he has a lot more maturity than all you judgemental morons.

MM says:

10:31am | 19/06/09

Bob Brown, if you need a “pleasant diversion” while you are being paid to do one of the most important jobs for the Australian people, then get another job.  This is not good enough.  You made your choice, Sarah - and sadly that means your kids are going to come second sometimes.  Bet you like the pay, huh?  Pull your head in or stay home with her.

Trevor says:

10:32am | 19/06/09

What is it about some parents, and mothers in particular, that think everyone wants to see, hear and smell their whinging little children ? Surely the other workers have a right to a child free environment while at work so they can do the job they are paid for.

John B says:

10:34am | 19/06/09

Bring them into the factories (what’s left of them) into the courtroom (sorry your honour I have to change a nappy, on surf patrol (I can’t save you just now), etc, etc. Do your job (Ha! Ha!) pollies and leave your kids at home or in a nursery, not in a work place like the rest of us.

Steve says:

10:35am | 19/06/09

So the rule is no strangers/children allowed and a Senator broke the rules. Why do they think that the rules dont apply to them?

M says:

10:38am | 19/06/09

I’ve heard all those facts about your buddy, Boris.  Doesn’t change my mind one bit.  Hazards are a part of the game if you want to play politics and collect a nice fat paycheck for your trouble and your unexpected bell-ringing.  Parliament is supposed to represent the views of the Australian electorate - even if we’re judgemental morons.  Judgemental morons put her there, and judgemental morons pay her salary.  The judgemental morons are not happy with children and similar “pleasant diversions”  in their senate (serious business for our nation) and are voicing their opinion here.  The end.

Misty says:

10:39am | 19/06/09

Well if they are going to allow children into the Chamber, why not move the proceedings of the Chamber out to the Child Care Facility?

Jo Ryan says:

10:40am | 19/06/09

What a postion of privilege to be ‘humiliated’ from.  Was her child ever hurt or hungry or cold because she didn’t have a job or money to look after the child in the first place?  Get a life lady.

Max says:

10:40am | 19/06/09

Leave your damn kids at home - work is for working.

Bloody tree hugging hairy armpit greens - get a life!

Denys Goldthorpe says:

10:45am | 19/06/09

Yes their should be a creche for working parents at the parliament, but even though senator Hogg was within his rights to ask for the child’s removal he was very wrong to do so on this occasion. He said he couldn’t have a child in the chamber during a division, by removing the child he single hand idly created another division. Senator Hogg must apologize to Senator Sarah Hanson-Young and to the Senate for the disruption he caused to the Senate.

James says:

10:45am | 19/06/09

Of course she should be thrown out…it’s a work place for crying out loud…....Desicions are too be made and they want a child care centre

Ted - brisbane says:

10:51am | 19/06/09

And why cant we all take our kids (and pets) to work? (Der!)

Get real Senator. You’ve got your hands on the workings and steering wheel of my country and you want us to believe the distraction of having your child with you wont affect your ability?  Give us a break.
Never mind just “divisions” in the house - senators and MP’s are paid to do a very important job and should take it very seriously indeed.
Playgrounds and schools are for children and Parliament is for mature Parliamentarians - even though some cant make the distinction!

By now your supporters must be wondering if they made the right choice voting for someone who cant see straight.

Donovan Ferguson says:

10:51am | 19/06/09

To quote the official story “The South Australian senator was saying goodbye to her baby before putting her in a car bound for Canberra’s airport and a flight back to Adelaide to see her dad”.

Can someone PLEASE tell me that we taxpayers are not funding this babies travel, presumably with a nanny, between Canberra and Adelaide???

Ant. says:

10:51am | 19/06/09

regarding Boria Hilton’s points - yes the facts help and so of the rants about this are on the hysterical side.  However I still think that the member has an office,, she has staff.  the appropriate course of action as the Bells rang would have been to get one of those staff to colect the child so that there did not have to vbe a scene of a distraught child being dragged form its mother.  An inability to rationaly problem solve in a, dare I say it, “crisis”, would seem to make this person   think twice about her career.

Natasha says:

10:55am | 19/06/09

Very disturbing. I can not stand it when the mother who sits at the other desk in my office brings her child in. I can not work to back ground noise of the Wiggles on DVD, nor can I file when he is having a sleep on his mini couch in front of the filing cabinets. I can’t tolerate paint being flung around while she tapes up pictures on the walls for him to paint and I find the general baby talk (from her!) entirely distracting. I never went to work with my mother. When did this become ok??

John says:

10:55am | 19/06/09

Re the comment: ‘Children should be allowed to be with their mothers, they have rights too.’ There goes the possibility of mothers being surgeons, specialists, pilots and a 1000 other important positions, because in most cases it is impossible to have a child with the mother when she is ‘on duty’.

im says:

10:56am | 19/06/09

Hanson-Young should quit if she can’t be separated from her child.

JG says:

10:57am | 19/06/09

Jeez, Max, what have armpits got to do with this? Get a grip.

OC says:

11:00am | 19/06/09

Hello, I am Sarah and I will be your waitress today. There may be delays in your meals and drinks service due to nappy-changes and feeding times.

A says:

11:02am | 19/06/09

We all know that women can multi-task! Can’t have been too difficult to hold your baby on your lap AND cast a vote. It was a Division at short notice, not a debate. Can’t believe the uproar about this - so much for family-friendly policies. The President of the Senate should be able to use more discretion - yes, remove the child if causing a ruckus, otherwise, just get on with business. Unfortunately, being in politics does not lead to a neat 9-5 drop the kids at childcare routine. I’ve never voted Greens, but I think it is great to see young women entering Parliament.

Liz B says:

11:06am | 19/06/09

As a working mum who hasn’t brought my child into the workplace, I think there are wider issues at stake here than simply accusing this pollie of wanting privileges most of us don’t have. They work (generally) much longer hours than many of us and travel regularly. To encourage women to enter and stay in parliament - which has wider societal benefits for all of us - parliament needs to offer a slightly more flexible approach. I don’t agree with allowing screaming or noisy kids in the Chamber, but I think the rules should allow discretion for kids to sit quietly if they’re not disturbing other members. Btw I gather there were no staffers around to mind her child for the unexpected vote and she may not have been able to drop the child off into childcare at short notice…

JW says:

11:13am | 19/06/09

What everyone here seems to not understand is that parliament does not sit 9am to 5pm. Sessions drag on far into the night. Too often, particularly in the Senate, parliamentatians simply leave the house and only return for a Division. In this instance, the Senator was in the house and, as I understand it, her daugther was about to return to her home in South Australia after which time the Senator would not see her for days and was having a short goodbye cuddle.
When Parlimentarians can clock on at 8.30 am and know they’ll be in front ot he telly with the kids by 6.30pm, we can start talking about the appropriateness of children at work in this setting.
Anywhow, the real issue is not “children at work”, this child was not planning to spend the day among the red leather of the Senate. The issue is that everyone is so quick to judge the hardest job on earth - motherhood. I suggest everyone try it themselves and feel the guilt and torment that every mother experiences all the time before they comment. Tory, at risk of sounding like a total bitch, how many kids do you have?

RT says:

11:17am | 19/06/09

Isn’t the other side of this that politicians do not have defined working hours like most of us do? They have to attend Parliament when it is sitting but there is a lot of other business that is done during and outside the actual sitting time. I understand that most politicians work very long daily hours during sessions of parliament.  That doesn’t compare with the work hours of many commenting here, I suspect.

If a senator or member with a young child was not allowed to be with the child at all when working, that’s not a very family friendly policy is it? We all love to beat up on pollies and sometimes they deserve it, but I think we should give pollies who are parents of babies and toddlers a bit of slack.

Ray says:

11:18am | 19/06/09

The child should never have been allowed in there in the first place. Senator Hanson-Young shows no respect for anyone else, or the rules.If she can not manage her home life what chance have we got of her making a decision about this country.Greens leader Bob Brown wants the Senate to adopt new rules allowing infants into the chamber, may I suggest they both focus on the more important issues as there is already enough children in parliament, GET REAL AND GROW UP.

Jon says:

11:23am | 19/06/09

What a waste of tax payers money to debate this. I am sure there are more important issues to debate as well. Sarah Hanson-Young you will be remembered for all the wrong reasons, which is not surprising considering the average intelligence of the people who represent us in the Senate.

HE says:

11:24am | 19/06/09

I say you’re all wrong!

Why shouldn’t politicians be allowed to inflict their precious, screaming brats on the rest of society? We’re subjected to them in aeroplanes, supermarkets and restaurants, so why not in the Senate?

Let the doting parents who are oblivious to the rest of us do what they want.

Also, just for the record, I’m not one of those people who believe that those tree-hugging, politically-correct, do-gooder Greens should be turned into compost.

So there!

Ross says:

11:26am | 19/06/09

Who the **** do these people think they are??
I can’t think of any other occupation in which the employee would be permitted to take the kids along.  This woman is being paid very well to do a job, and she wants to have her kid/s with her???  Look ahead a few years when she has several, in school holidays, and she wants to have them at work with her. 
It’s not the job of her staff to baby sit.  Pay for childcare as everybody else does or get out of the job.  get a factory job and see if the boss lets you have little Kora on the floor with you.

Rupert says:

11:46am | 19/06/09

This lady has successfully made a mockery of our Government for thinking it is OK to take her child to an important meeting, She has inflicted her little darling on grown ups. We don’t all want to go to work and be stuck with an immature woman who brings her kid to the table of big guns. There is a time and place for this.. it is called day care. You can’t have it all Gen X and Y. You either get yourself a well paid job and put the child in day care, or don’t have any kids. Please do what you wish but don’t think you can help run the country and be paid by the tax payers to indulge yourself with your child on your lap.

S says:

11:56am | 19/06/09

My god you people just don’t check before you rush into lynching, do you? UNEXPECTED VOTE. She didn’t just take her kid to work as a matter of course. And the kid was QUIET until someone ripped her out of the arms of her mother. Yay for uninformed vilification.

Trev says:

12:05pm | 19/06/09

Kids have no place in the workplace

alessandro says:

12:10pm | 19/06/09

So those of us who don’t want to see children in the Senate Chamber are all judgemental morons?  What an extraordinary comment. If the Senator is - as you claim - such a good friend - does it follow - ipso facto - she also considers us to be judgemental morons? It is certainly something your friend’s constituents should keep in mind for the next election. If you are playing fast and loose and merely shooting from the hip, then you should remember the wartime adage - loose lips sink ships! We are not all judgemental morons - however close you might be to your friend.

Shelley says:

12:22pm | 19/06/09

Recently a toddler died when a table fell on it in the workplace. The chances of this happening in parliament are a trillion to one, however this doesn’t make this workplace any more appropriate for this child than any other.
This senator/mother should not have put her child in such a stressful position, and needs to put her child’s best interests ahead of her own agenda.

David says:

12:23pm | 19/06/09

While pollie bashing might be good sport - what no one acknowledges is how challenging parliament is for parents. For 13 weeks of every year - Senators and Members leave home to go to Canberra. The chambers often sit late, particularly on sitting days prior to a break, and the ability to see your children is challenging.

If you people want the Australian Parliament to be a place that is truly representative of the population - then we need to be accepting of people from all circumstances and make it a welcoming place. It’s already not a very family friendly work environment.

Be realistic, there are many parents who have had to finish something off at work and have picked up their kids from day care and gone quickly back to work. Her child wasn’t with her for the whole day and was with her mother for a only a short time when the division was called.

Just so happens that this particular workplace is in the public eye.

Unfortunately, when the bells ring for a division in the Senate - you don’t have much of an opportunity to sort something out…

There’s some incredibly ill-informed comment here. Parliamentarians have a very inflexible working environment on sitting days and Parliament House only started providing a childcare centre last year after 30 years of lobbying.

Ross says:

12:23pm | 19/06/09

“S”, UNEXPECTED VOTE = UNEXPECTED CHILDCARE.

I’m sure many workers have been caught in this situation; called in to work, regular babysitter/childcarer sick, etc., so whats stopping her from making alternative arrangements??  Nothing I would ave thought.
This woman is being paid well by the taxpayer; she should treat the taxpayer with a degree of respect and not come this bull$hit!!

BMann says:

12:24pm | 19/06/09

Sarah Hanson-Young had to know a vote was coming in the Senate because it was called by her own party- on their own legislation.  If she didn’t know what was going on she really should ask Bob Brown to keep her informed about what is happening in the Chamber from time to time.

Helen says:

12:25pm | 19/06/09

Humiliated or not humiliated this woman should of not brought her child into a Chamber of Parliament. She brought this humility on herself.  You imagine all those politicians bringing their children to the meetings.  For god sake this is a child care centre…  These politicians get paid to run Australia not baby sitting.  If she cant afford to get her child looked after she should not be in Politics. Simple Commonsense….

Meredyth says:

12:33pm | 19/06/09

The ONLY time it’s acceptable to have children in the workplace is when the workplace is designed specifically for the care and/or education of children. ie. child care facility or a school.  Mind you, the child in question was better behaved (while in the chamber) and potentially more intelligent than a fair few of our paid public representatives!

Gab says:

12:39pm | 19/06/09

BABIES DON’T BELONG AT WORK - Tell that to “Stay-at-home” Mums!!!

Chienne says:

12:42pm | 19/06/09

It’s fairly obvious, the work place, let alone parliament is no place for tots.  Get your act together girl, what the hell are we paying you for?  This how you manage your time?  It makes me wonder just how incompetent she is for this to happen in the first place.  If it was me or any other “common” worker we wouldn’t have a job.  Get real Toots, this is the real adult world.

Jane says:

12:46pm | 19/06/09

JW…agreed, parliament is not 9 to 5…and anyone who thinks it is is either naive or stupid…and has no right being there. The nature of the ‘job’ should have been known before putting oneself up for ‘selection’. Maybe Sarah should seek employment somewhere else where 9-5 type hours can accomodate her inability to cope with ‘child’ ( over the age of the creche) type responsibilities. Pfft.
Parliament is not NOR SHOULD IT BE child ‘friendly’.
Give me a break…..the lengths you people will go to defend the indefensible.

Phileepe says:

12:49pm | 19/06/09

I think this double barreled Senator should go do some time in the Navy. Maybe a few 6 month deployments in the North Arabian Gulf and grow/harden up.

Kevin says:

12:51pm | 19/06/09

Couldn’t agree more with Tory Maguire articale. Just another case of politicans not living in the real world. Let me make it easy for this simpleton politican. As one of your employer’s (a novel idea I know - politicans believe the public are only there to serve them and therefore treat the voters with contempt) Ms Hanson-Young, I’m tellling you to leave your children at home or make approriate arrangements for them when you are at work otherwise your employers may decide that your sevices are no longer required next time you’re up for election.

Lisa says:

12:52pm | 19/06/09

Go and get a baby sitter just like everyone else.  You of ALL people should know this is not a place for kids. By gee what a stunt to get attention. Lets everyone take our kids to work and see how we go.

LAZ says:

12:55pm | 19/06/09

So when there’s a war room meet or other major crisis’s that affect s20 million people… ‘unbelievable’

EssJay says:

12:56pm | 19/06/09

This another example of a Green’s stunt, pure and simple. However, this time it has backfired. Whilst the parties in the Senate may agree amongst themselves about SH-Y’s treatment, it is clearly evident that the voters are not happy with this waste of time. The Senate is not a creche and should not be used as such. SH-Y needs to grow up. If she cannot accept this, she needs to resign and get another job. More of this sort of thing is going to lose the Green’s votes, especially if being the supposed only true “Green” party in parliament, vote down “green legislation” in the form of the ETS, in favour of the status quo which is to do nothing.

BP says:

01:00pm | 19/06/09

Darling if you can’t stand the heat ... GET OUT of the parliament. You were not elected to be a full time working mum that is a choice that you chose to make. If you can’t or don’t believe that by working full time you are able to provide your child with the adequate one on one time then LEAVE, and let others who are entrusted with the work that their constituency elected them to do take the role that you so clearly give little or no respect to.

R says:

01:07pm | 19/06/09

I bet she is the type of mother that will also take her child to a five star resturant and allow it to come and play at my table while I am trying to enjoy my champagne.  Children just do not belong some place and the workplace is at the top of that list.  Parents please don’t think that because you think your darling child is perfect we all agree.  When I come to work my 18 mth old attends day care, if we are heading out for a nice dinner we find a sitter, so a little courtesy to other for heavens sake!

Arfy says:

01:09pm | 19/06/09

In Hanson-Young’s defense, perhaps she thought the Parliamentary Chamber WAS the child-care center, what with all the childish antics performed there.  Seriously though, she must have rocks in her head to think it was a good idea in the first place.

John Moss says:

01:13pm | 19/06/09

If that was the most humiliating thing that has ever happened to her she needs to get out more.

I’m a single Dad, I have had to make arrangements for my son to be cared for while I am at work and I don’t have the free and readily available childcare that Parliamentarians do. Sarah Hanson-Young needs to accept her responsibilities as a parent and a Senator.

Brendan says:

01:20pm | 19/06/09

@ Jane 12:46 - couldn’t agree more

OC says:

01:37pm | 19/06/09

It is the thin edge of the wedge. Once a precedent is set then it is really just a matter of time before others use excuses to bring their kiddies into the chamber.  This is not a “ad absurdum” argument. Some workplaces do allow children into the workplace in emergencies (baby sitter cancelled, child care will not not accept sick child) but I have read reports of bosses who abuse this policy and routinely bring in their brats who disruptively run amok while their handlers beam on proudly.  Yes I know that anecdote does not make data, but non-parents (or indeed responsible parents) should not have to become babysitters for other people’s kids at work.

Dean says:

01:40pm | 19/06/09

The most humiliating thing that has ever happened to her…please.  If she didn’t want to feel humiliated then she should not have taken her child into the Chambers at all.  The fact that Parliament currently allows for breastfeeding and now probably this crap is just absurd.  In a place where the future of the nation is being debated and decided is no such place for children.  In fact there should be signs on the door saying “NO CHILDREN ALLOWED”.  When we have politicians with their heads in such spaces hardly any wonder the country is so f*cked up!.

ollie says:

01:41pm | 19/06/09

obviously she is not interested in what is going on around her and is diverting the other greens attention as well. she does not belong in parliament and neither does her child. get rid of her

Jack says:

01:42pm | 19/06/09

Will the real Politicians please stand up! This lot are starting to look like a bunch of school kds. Honestly, we expect and deserve better from those drawing their income from the public purse. Get on with the job and stop these silly, time wasting, grand standing, point scoring, efforts at grabbing media attention. We don’t want your kids in Parliament nor do we want it debated. Get on with performing your duties please!

janine Greening says:

01:49pm | 19/06/09

I ,do not believe children should be in parliament,where decisions are made about our country, the distraction of children wether they are smiling crying is not the point,do see a doctor or nurse take there kids to work,
We the taxpayers want our government official making decisions with nothing else on their minds   but what is being discussed that day,not their attention on a child who is not a elected member of parliament

IO says:

01:51pm | 19/06/09

What the **&!! Phil of 9.42am are you talking about?  All about the right wing not getting over losing the election??  Are you brain dead?  This is about someone making a stupid decision.  Do you work somewhere where you are allowed to take your toddlers?  Let me know where, so I can avoid it like the plague.  I go to work to WORK, which is what I am paid for.  I work in a very family friendly organisation but taking the kids to work?  I thought we were looking to be more productive as a country and now we have the Senate debating the rules on Monday when there just has to be more important legislation to discuss.  The Greens - say no more.

John says:

01:54pm | 19/06/09

We could vote her into a baby seat.

SW says:

01:57pm | 19/06/09

Please, please tell me that I am wrong in the understanding of your caption to Sarah’s photo.  If Labor, Libs and Greens are unified in this, what the!!  Somebody grow a brain!

SW says:

02:08pm | 19/06/09

JW @ 11.13 - I have no problem with sounding like a total bitch, because I am not caught up in the political correctness of women not being able to criticise another woman in the name of feminism or whatever, I have kids, 3, I don’t take them to work, if they are sick, I stay home, find a friend whatever.  I worked for a pollie for 12 yrs and am well aware of the hours, but I knew what I was getting into when I went for the job (my children were babies).  It was nothing to get a call at 2am to say get into the office, something had happened.  You make a choice and live with it.

Dixie says:

02:12pm | 19/06/09

To all those that think it is her right to have her child on her lap or whatever, once all the fem-natzi’s get onto this, you will see Parliament vamped up to accomodate children. Can’t you just imagine the House all fur lined with bouncy balls and Dr Zeus books, nappies and bottles and little tables and chairs for the little ones.
Don’t you just love it…............NOT!!
Australia is always lined up to be first in the bloody- ridiculous- do-gooder stakes.

suze says:

02:22pm | 19/06/09

While i envy the parliament privilege and all its perks of being a senator including accessible quality childcare, staff, great salary etc. I really do not see any harm in a well behaved 2 yr old in parliament considering most politicians act like 2 yr old’s anyway and that the vote was concerning advertising junk food during children’s television. The child should have had a vote.

I really do think this incident and I’d prefer to call it an “incident” rather than “stunt” because I and many mothers have been in similar “incidents” and it is humiliating. No one has the right to grab a child out of a good mothers arms.
Staff aren’t paid to babysit and probably don’t have the skills required. Caring for a child even for 30 minutes can be challenging especially when they are crying for their mummy.
The real issue is that the Government lacks to be inclusive of mothers like most employment lacks to be inclusive of mothers. 
If there is no flexibility and dignity shown to mothers in such a place then imagine how difficult it is for all other working mothers.

I thought Senator Bob Brown did a wonderful thing for standing up for his colleague and in turn make a stand for all mothers.

If there is not enough flexibility and dignity in the workforce for mothers then mothers should receive a salary for caring for their children at home.

Mothers have a very different bond especially with their young children so i don’t think anyone can compare against a mother and a father taking a child into work unless there are attachment issues.  So long the child was not distracting the mother from the task then what was the problem?
Plenty of mothers (and fathers) are forced to take their children into work or into study or to appointments every day because it’s a fact of life and you just can’t trust anyone with your child and it is an expense that childless adults don’;t have to worry about and in most cases men don’t have to worry about.
A very BIG shame more “mothers” aren’t backing her up as I’m sure many have been or will be in this kind of situation.
Mothers, we’re damned if we work we’re damned if we don’t.

Gosh, if only more men were like Bob Brown…awe!

GarryM says:

02:29pm | 19/06/09

I see both sides of the argument here, I see the long hours of a politician and balancing that with being a parent. I am torn by the thought, ‘you are representing and making decisions for a nation your mind should be on that decision’ to ‘I have a family life balance to consider’ but how appropriate is it to have a child in a workplace. I have no issue with an office, or the building but you must temper that with your sworn duty as an official. I appreciate the plight but sorry, this is the country’s centre of decision making here the need of the many out ways the need of the few (sorry trekkie’s) You are there for us, a sacrifice is made by all political appointees and one is the lack of family life. I understand the situation but believe this is not a place for a child. What if they fell or was knocked or you fell down a step carrying the child. The same accidents that can happen anywhere, do you really want to have that risk in a workplace? As a parent you should not, as a political leader you should not. If laws need changing, you’re in the right place to start debate do not abuse the standard or condemn it as outdated, just make the change.

K.C. Ting says:

02:36pm | 19/06/09

I wish I could take my kids to work. What works for the rest of the community should also applies to our politicians at work!! Why should they be different. Come on!! No children allowed! should be the norm. Where can you see work place allowing babies in for breast feeding. We have to express our milk at work and then bring it home!!! Now you want toddlers at work as well…... What a joke - get to work and I mean WORK!!!

Christine says:

02:45pm | 19/06/09

What a compassionate country we are and what a sisterhood we continually display.  It was a once-off, perhaps there were circumstances which led to her bringing the child into work.  My boss sat her daughter in the corner of our office for several weeks until getting her a place in childcare when her parents unexpectedly went overseas.  Was it appropriate, probably not but did it cause any damage, did it upset staff, did it stop us from doing our jobs properly. No.  What a great country it is when people stop and stare if your child cries on the street or in a shopping centre, throws a tantrum in public or behaves like, god forbid, a child.  Yet we have one of the highest incidences of peodophilia in the world and do we all get up in arms at the amount of priests, school teachers and police members that are continually being exposed as perverts, no but 100 plus comments about this?  What a joke.

Adam C says:

02:45pm | 19/06/09

My work shouldn’t have to suffer because of someone else’s decision to have a baby.

OC says:

02:45pm | 19/06/09

“the hardest job on earth - motherhood”  - JW.

Oh yeah, the leader of the free world has NOTHING on women with proven fertilty! *rolls eyes*

mike says:

03:09pm | 19/06/09

The way most pollies go on and the language they use this is no place for a child it would almost be child abuse

Eliescha says:

03:20pm | 19/06/09

I think you really havent presented all the facts in your article. Firstly, the child care centre within parliament that u speak of is full, like all child care centres, people have their names on a waiting list and secondly, the senator was playing with her child when the bell went for the vote and there was noone around to take the child at that very moment and she did not want to miss the vote. I am not commenting on whether it is right or wrong but if you are going to write an article, please present all the facts, otherwise you just appear lazy and frankly not very good at your job.

BS says:

03:25pm | 19/06/09

I have to say that I have never seen so many people agree in a comments page. The work place is no place for a child. You can not safely care for your child and do your work effectively. We, who have been thru the ‘leaving the baby with someone else” on a daily basis know how she felt, BUT we dont then campaign to have the rules changed. They are there for a very good reason. (Love Chris’s comment with the pilot. Love to see Jasper, he sounds so cute!!)

Julie-Anne Turner says:

04:03pm | 19/06/09

Due to financial pressers or other reasons, so many mothers work and sadly there is not enough childcare places available to cater for the ongoing population of career women.  Many people do not have the support mechanisms in place, such as other family members to help them out if one of their children ends up sick from school.  What do you do then?  A mother cannot abandon the needs of their child. Unfortunately, it’s the women that cop the blunt when it comes to choosing a career or staying at home full time. Sadly, many workplaces will not accommodate easily when a mother misses work a day or two to stay at home and look after their child, for reasons beyond their control.  Some people even lose some pay in order to put parenting first.  Is this what our society should be?  No doubt, in years to come, there will be this debate: staying at home mum v career parent.

J says:

04:06pm | 19/06/09

The bulk of these comments are very scathing, but I have to say that I dont really agree. During sitting weeks, Senators can work through to the early hours of the morning, and certainly this incident seems to have occurred outside what are normal working hours for most of us. A child of 2 is usually shuffled off to bed pretty early, so if the senator wanted to spend what time she could with her daughter then lets give her some credit for doing so. I dont think that a quite child in the room for a few minutes makes a lot of difference to the process, and I can certainly remember spending a few minutes at my mothers workplace on occassion while she organised what to do with me on holidays or if I was sick etc. and since when does being a senate staffer qualify you as a childcare worker (probably isn’t listed in the job description). The Senate chamber is not a creche, fine, but in this day and age, can’t we offer a little flexibility to a hard working mum?

SG says:

04:22pm | 19/06/09

I sometimes have to look after my daugther at work for a few minutes to a few hours.  It’s not a problem for my employer and is part and parcel of having an employee with children.

Such a big deal made about nothing.  Kora was sitting peacefully until turfed out.  If they had just left her be there would have been no fuss and no headlines to make. 

On a further note, I had thought it was fine to bring children into parliament - they can be breastfed in parliament, and since the average child is breastfed until age 4 (read the WHO stats if you don’t beleive me) then their presence should be expected.

Mark says:

04:55pm | 19/06/09

LAZ - you aren’t seriously suggesting they should allow the Greens into a War Room meeting are you?

For those of you bleating about discriminating against mothers by not allowing children into Parliament, get real. Sometimes “discrimination” has to take a back seat to common sense. You are either a parent of young children or an elected representative in our Federal Parliament making decisions that affect the country - you can’t be both at the same time. Don’t bleat about how difficult the parent/work balance is for her - it is a decision she has made for herself. It’s a decision all parents have to make, including me.

Dan says:

05:10pm | 19/06/09

I agree. I can’t take my kids into work and have them sit on my lap while I work. If she wants to have time off with her baby she should go on leave instaed of expectiong rights that no other Australians have.

Caitlin says:

05:22pm | 19/06/09

Maybe Australia can look into having a decent workplace why cant children go into work with you if that means the parents still do their job. Maybe instead of becomming a gay friendly society we need to first become a child friendly society, could be a good start. Children are very important and are our future, we do not know all the facts as to why this child was with her mum.I have to say children learn to behave very fast that is for sure if they are around other adults. i dont think it should be done all the time however known again I dont see a problem.

Ford says:

06:17pm | 19/06/09

Babies/kids don’t belong in the workplace.  They’re disruptive.  And then those of us who are childless (or make suitable childcare arrangements) are forced to pick up the slack for the people who bring their kids to work while they deal with their kids.  It prevents the parents from fulfilling their job obligations.

Billy says:

06:34pm | 19/06/09

Well, I’m amazed!!!!  Well not really….......The Greens, as many people have said,‘say no more.’  I couldn’t believe that Bob Brown needed money/accept/ for whatever he needed it for last week.  If this adventure was a stunt for publicity, what a bunch of empty air heads, expecting compassion from the public.  Excellent comments, most positive one, stay home and be a Mum and let some well deserving person do the job, and preferably a Liberal.

Bruce says:

06:51pm | 19/06/09

I may have been coaxed in to voting green because the others are so abysmal. However not noe and not ever.
Do you think that Mother Sarah took the little one in on the off chance that one of the performers might break into some Dr Seuss, like the POMS did?

iansand says:

08:08pm | 19/06/09

If this was a division called on by the Greens, why didn’t they check with their own members to ensure that the timing was family friendly?

Tony says:

08:20pm | 19/06/09

For all the people here saying that those who voted for this idiot woman should feel ashamed of themselves…. please remember…  she was elected under the proportional representation method: most likely NO ONE VOTED FOR HER !!!

AAhhhh ... the joys of the left…

Rita says:

08:36pm | 19/06/09

The child should never have been in the chamber in the first place. Get a life and come into the real world if you know how to that is. Stop blubbering and get on with your well paid job and employ a nanny ot childminder. You were voted in by the public start earning your votes.

S@mmy says:

09:49pm | 19/06/09

Sorry I disagree with most of you. There are times when work HAS to be done and your child may not be able to be looked after elsewhere. Thank god my boss ain’t as cranky as most seem to be. He loves all of our kids and even has a box of lego in his office in case our kids or his grandkids come to visit.

We don’t have them there all day but an hour or two when necessary doesn’t bother him.

jeanna says:

10:22pm | 19/06/09

In reality, if you are able to bring your child to work , then you are not really working and your position should be made redundant!!

I have never had a job where I have had enough free time to care for a child simultaneously! Aside from occupational health and safety issues, how can one concentrate on doing their job duties?

Boo-Man says:

11:06pm | 19/06/09

She is a Senator….paid by taxpayers, who, incidentally, have to make last minute child care arrangements when they are called in…like fire-fighters and cops, for instance!!!  When I go to work, I don’t want some-one elses kid taking the focus off my objectives!!  NO EXCUSE!!  What about the soldiers who are deployed overseas…?  Can they take THEIR kid to work to act as a heart-wrencher?  What a crock of…all I can say is…STAY HOME AND LOOK AFTER YOUR KID YOURSELF!!!

ant says:

11:16pm | 19/06/09

I’m worried about the calls from various prominent people in the media today for more family friendly workplaces, and this incident seems to be spearheading it.  Don’t those of us who don’t want kids screaming around at work have any rights at all? Do they all assume that we all sit simpering fondly at peoples’ kids?  Can we please have some adult places left to us?

Matthew says:

11:21pm | 19/06/09

Umm where was the father?

Maria Stepano says:

11:33pm | 19/06/09

Oh Dear!
Bob Menzies would turn over in his grave at this childish behavior.
How is this woman concentrating on matters at hand with a two year old bouncing on her lap, causing serious distraction for other Pollies attending to the serious matters of running the nation.
Very unprofessional and judging by all the previous comments it will be her downfall…..hopefully!!
Bye Bye!!

Rebeca Kersten says:

12:00am | 20/06/09

It’s 2009, not 1909. Women are CAN have successful careers and be mothers these days. We should be able to do both at once, and both to the best of our abilities. This is just another incident that will ensure that parliament continues to be the ‘boys club’ that it has been for far too long. My workplace is family friendly, and if the need arose for me to bring my child to work, that would be acceptable (especially if the child was as non-disruptive as Sarah Hanson-Young’s daughter was prior being ‘ejected’). If you can’t get your work done without being “distracted” by a quietly sitting child, then your attention span must be less than that of said child! Obviously the ‘boy’s club’ don’t really care about getting more women into Government, because I for one would never work in a workplace that couldn’t accommodate what should be the most important thing in most adult’s lives: their children!

Liz says:

12:31am | 20/06/09

obviously not many of you people actually read any associated reports or watched any news reports,  this small child was about to be put on a plane and her mother wanted a few more moments with her,  who are you to judge her ability to be either a parent or a member of the senate?  personally as a working mother i admire this young mother who is trying to have a career and also be a mother (or father),  it isn’t as easy as it seems.

Jack says:

03:15am | 20/06/09

The senator is an idiot, she is there representing the people of Australia, that is her chosen career. She receives an above average salary plus a number of perks that the ordinary Australian could only dream of, yet she has little respect for the Australian people, taking her 2 year old with her instead of focusing on the job.

Andrew says:

06:05am | 20/06/09

Everybody just take it down a thousand. She had a babysitter but it fell through at the last minute. The Childcare facility is full so she couldn’t use it. Her staffers are doing the work they are there for. After these options were exhausted she took the kid into the chamber because she had a job to do (vote) Its about the rules are rules “no strangers in the house for a vote” decision. I think a little leeway was being asked for not a ” I wanna have my kid in paraliament all day” request.

Kate says:

06:35am | 20/06/09

This really is beyond ridiculous - one goes to work to WORK. I get paid a hell of a lot less than she does and am expected to fork out shedloads of $$$$ for childcare whilst i am doing my (much less ‘important’) job - why should SHE be an different???

Le Goldthorpe says:

07:19am | 20/06/09

Le Goldthorpe says

Pollies are very well paid; Senator S. Hanson-Young get a baby sitter for your child. Chamber like courts or any other business places are NOT for children,when one is suppose to be working.(& if you do not want to leave your child with a carer/baby sitter,then resign and be a full time mom)!

Ralph Stephens says:

08:08am | 20/06/09

We are paying these politicians good money to get on with the job of running the country. We all have responsibilities with our children but generally do not drag these responsibilities into our work places. This politician needs to get real and grow up. Do you want to be a mother full time, part time or a politician, make your decision. The general public do not want to be represented by people who clearly have not got their minds on the job. I believe these pollies have more support systems in place that cater for their children’s needs than the general working public. We can only dream about these types of perks.

Brenda says:

08:33am | 20/06/09

I live in the U.S. and I thought we had the world’s worst brats and most idiot “mothers” but you have us beat so far except Nancy Pelosi did fly her grandbrats at taxpayers’ expense.  But at least those trying to do their jobs in our Congress haven’t had to listen to one of them scream.  People have a right to be in public places without having to listen to someone’s two year old screaming (or even napping) brat.  Jeez.  You need to vote that “mother” out or recall her and while you are at it check on whether she is technically unfit since she is so immature as to whine.

ken says:

08:34am | 20/06/09

phil you have bever been on this page before?? well i hope never to see and read your brainless dribble again..what the devil has john howard and costello got to do with this issue. Its people like you who vote in idiot senators like her. smarten up and get a brain. fool.

Monica says:

08:50am | 20/06/09

Brainless. Who would take their child in to that place. Has not got her head screwed on right.  Was there no one else who could take care of her while this was going on. She stated herself that it wasn’t going to take that long so she should have seeked help. Looking for attention if you ask me. Also did she not seek advice on whether this could be done. Children are not permitted at our workplace and should not be permitted in any work place.

rob says:

09:09am | 20/06/09

im sorry but there are no decent excuses to take a child onto the floor in parliament.  given the circumstances in this case it should have been allowed since obviously the child was more disruptive being taken away from mum but the senator needs to be made aware that this is never to happen again.
and as for those who are thinking this is just a right wing fanatical web site - well i dont know if it is or it isnt because ive never been here before either but this isnt about politics - it is about common sense.

Bobbie says:

09:24am | 20/06/09

Did any one else see in the vision that the child was thrown into the seat by the senator when she entered the chamber?

Andy from Kirra says:

09:40am | 20/06/09

Parliament house is a workplace like thousands of others across the country and people working should have to put up with a crying toddler in their place of work.
You don’t have babies/toddlers in the Surgery room, Dealing room or Construction site.

DLS says:

10:43am | 20/06/09

Well after reading the drivel on this site I cannot help but be totally disgusted with the Australian cold, hard, emotionless, dog-eat-dog, attitude towards families, children and work. 
In my lifetime around the world I have seen countless examples of where children are interleaved into the workplace and it still WORKS!  Work and family life cannot be separated to such an emotionless degree.  I will grant that there are many jobs out there where it is patently obvious that children should not be present (Airline cockpits, Trucks, Mine sites, heavy manufacturing, and many more).  The obvious thing out of all of this is what has been missing in the attitude of most Aussies - the words and terms; flexibility, compassion, a fair go, the importance of family, the integration of family life and the workplace and vice versa.  Any person who has been overseas and seen how in many (mainly) poorer countries where you see kids in the shop (out the back obviously) with the parents who run it.  Countless small businesses successfully run with kids present some of the time.  No I am not saying all workplaces should allow kids.  Yes there is a limit to where kids should be allowed.  But a blanket ban in EVERY workplace is a stupid, over-the-top, gross-over-reaction.  The cold-hard-nosed reactions here only serve to show that most of us place too much emphasis on work, in detriment to famly life.  A lot of peoples lives revolve around thier career.  I work to live, not live to work.  My family comes first.  Without family you have nothing.  We as a society need to lighten up.  Sure we need to pay the mortgage and some workplaces obviously prohibit kids - I accept that, but the odd child here is there is not going to impact most workplace that badly.  Get over it.

Kevin says:

10:51am | 20/06/09

Sarah Hanson-Young-Stuntpulling-Fool, It’s not about Kora is it? It’s all about you and the Stunt pulling do-gooders Greens you work with. You are a disgrace and you should resign immediately. You choose public life and you get rewarded handsomely for you work, so at least give the now disgruntled voters that put you in office a fair days work for your exorbitant pay. I work and I put my child in Daycare and they organise for the child minding staff to have there breaks so they do not have to bring the child to my office.

Sarah Hanson-Young-Stuntpulling-Fool…..RESIGN, you have disgraced yourself and your workplace.

Peter Kelly says:

10:54am | 20/06/09

Just when the greens havnt had a lot of publicity lately, up pops this load of twaddle. In join the “usual suspects” although the front (damn near the whole building) of the WLE hasnt joined in as yet.
Keep the kids in the creche the taxpayers have so generously provided for you or get another job. Simple as that.
Keating had it right, “unrepresentative swill”

Kim says:

11:03am | 20/06/09

Kora was in the Senate for mere minutes, not making a noise. It certainly seems that Senator Hogg did the best job of interrupting proceedings - perhaps the media should be giving him a red-hot go?

Michele says:

11:42am | 20/06/09

While a child in the senate (and in reality in any workplace) may not be ideal it does highlight wider problems within the community in regards to women working outside the home.

As a society we need to provide support systems to help families so both parents can have rewarding careers if this is what they choose. It is only with the provision of good quality childcare, before and after school care along with stimulating school holiday programs available to those who need them that we can help families gain a good work life balance.

One would have hoped Parliament House would be a leader in this by providing support for members, male and female alike who are parents. The system obviously needs to be looked at not just a one off situation as has been reported, the Senate is obviously a system of governing based on the needs of men ( especially supporting men from years ago when their wives raised the families while they worked long hours) and not women and modern men ( who need a more flexible workplace to meet their other life commitments) , maybe positive changes can be made such as specific times for voting instead of this drop everything and run to vote and then our elected representatives could ensure they are available to be there to represent their electorate at the required times.

It is only by changing the system and supporting the diverse needs of women in the workplace, that we will achieve a fair representation of not only young women but all women in parliament.

Leah says:

12:25pm | 20/06/09

Bob Brown said having the child there was a “pleasant diversion” What the?? So we’re paying our pollies to be diverted from what they are supposed to be doing are we? I was under the mistaken impression that they’re there to actually work. Maybe Bob could go work in a creche if he wants diversion from politics.

Wayne says:

12:36pm | 20/06/09

I think it is interesting how a vote on a Greens motion caused a Greens Senator to be caught out. Surely if she was serious about the issue being debated she would have been there and then she would not have been placed in this position in the first place. “Unexpected” votes occur, but when it is during your party’s issue, she should have been prepared and dealt with this ahead of time.
Cuddling the kids during an issue she purports to care about is not fair representation.
Don’t blame the parliament for your whining about being unprpared and unprofessional

Sarah says:

12:41pm | 20/06/09

UNEXPECTED VOTE!!!!!! That’s no excuse. She admitted that she had taken her child in there before. To think she thought she would get sympathy from the public is a laugh. I’m a working mum and wouldn’t dream of bringing my child to work with me. The only excuse i’d accept is if she said she took her child with her to vote on behalf of her brain dead mum. Just be thankful that you have a job Hanson - Young!!!

mika says:

12:56pm | 20/06/09

Typical greens attitude to the law….

patrick says:

01:19pm | 20/06/09

Sorry, Is this some sort of spawn from the Andrew Bolt blog, or are the comments just piped straight through from there? That’s the only way to explain such a load of RW twaddle.

Carl says:

02:36pm | 20/06/09

Senators should lead by example! If there is going to be a debate in the parliament regarding this,  there should be a debate in everyone’s work place too. What is good for the king must be good for the subjects too. Why should a single mother or for that matter any mother send their child to daycare when a senator can take her child to her place of work?

joe says:

02:45pm | 20/06/09

youd think they could afforda baby sitter or something.

Christine Curtis says:

03:08pm | 20/06/09

How ridiculous that now voting on this. Toddlers should not be brought into the workplace, full stop! Do your job properly without your child with you at work OR make other arrangements like the rest of the Australia’s working parents.

Jordan H JONES says:

03:59pm | 20/06/09

This is fast becoming a societal issue. This Senator clearly has no concept of working life. In society, we go to work and earn an income. This is to afford our families and children. There are other places where if you choose to work, you can place your child. This is referred to as life management skills. They are or were taught to people from an early age, usually passed on from parent to child. It appears this has now gone. You see, the double barrelled named power players out there want it both ways. It is a slap in the face to the rest of society, particularly women who bare the brunt of the work-life balance issue that is now trendy to espouse. Then the Senator has the gall to say that she handed the child to a ‘staffer’, a Government employee to mind the child. It must have been like the ‘dispersal’ in WW2, I don’t know how the Senator coped with the trauma of the child’s cry as she was dragged helplessly away. She says she was humiliated and understood now how normal women in society must feel. Grow up lady - you have absolutely no idea. Wait until you cope with family life, schooling, extra-curricular activivites and other work-life balance commitments. The rest of us manage to survive. I would love to say that it is just a ‘Greens’ thing, but alas, it is endemic of current society. People seem to want it all - if history proves anything, we just can’t have it. I am sick to death of the double-barrells, the Sex Discrimination mob and others telling us about our rights, calling us ‘working families’ and labelling the majority of people who are getting along in life. Now they will debate it in parliament, while the country goes further down the drain on the really important issues. I am not a Labor fan, but didn’t Keating refer to the ‘unrepresented swill’ that is the Senate. Oh, sorry, we have had the other mob in the House of Reps do the same thing in the past. Silly me.

Colleen says:

05:26pm | 20/06/09

Well Bob Brown & Ms Hanson Young got exactly what they wanted, some limelight. Ms Hanson Young probably didn’t expect the flames she has received but really pretty naive to think she could take a screaming child into the equivalent of a board meeting. And how distressing for the child to be all of a sudden handed off to someone she might hardly have known. Ms Hanson Young hardly thought this stunt through, I’m glad she’s not putting that much thought into my electorate.

thomas says:

07:08pm | 20/06/09

too many of you are rule happy/inflexible and devoid of a sense of balance.no one said that she insists on her right to have her child with her 24/7.she would have voted and gone,a few minutes at most.democracy would have been safe.but a prefect had to have his moment.

Ruth says:

08:45pm | 20/06/09

I disagree with many of the statements here.  Work places, unless unsafe for children should not ban kids.  I for one am in favour of family friendly work places.  kids do and can belong in various workplaces.  I for one work much better knowing that I can be contacted and with my children when the children need me.  Not all can have this type of work.  I do .  My children and I appreciate work understanding.

gwen goldsmith says:

10:55pm | 20/06/09

I thought I’d vote green at the last federal election since there wasn’t much difference between the other two. I’ll not make that mistake again I find both the mother and her so called leader totally ridiculous . And its the first time I’ve bothered to write a comment too

Steve says:

08:09am | 21/06/09

I had to have another go - this senator is actually calling the eviction of her child a case of discrimination against working mothers! Sarah, you weren’t thinking when you took your child in to the chamber and you were’nt thinking when you made that ridiculous claim of discrimination. This is a case of discrimination but let’s be clear this is positive and fair discrimination - the child is not an elected representative and should not be there. It is not about working mothers it is about who should be in the chamber. Fair discrimination is all about rules that are for the good of all, without rules anything goes and the result is anarchy.
All politicans should take time to remember who they are - they are public servants, you work for us the Australian taxpayer. We pay your salaries, you work for us. At election time you ask us for a job and we make the decision. Look at the public response to this case! The Australian public, your employer has said a very loud NO! If you don’t like it, find another job.

Bridg says:

01:07am | 22/06/09

JW - i agree with you. and reading the comments here, i find yours the most sensible. “The issue is that everyone is so quick to judge the hardest job on earth - motherhood.”

Though I am not saying that I agree that parents/guardians should be allowed to bring their kids to work. It can be a distraction to themselves and their colleagues.

Even if parents do not have their kids physically with them, does that mean that their brains block out anything kid related as soon as they step into the office? Why do we seem to think that our politicians live in a different sphere than us where kids and other problems are not supposed to affect them? The fact that they receive taxpayer’s money seems to warrant, for some, a double standard.

Tony says:

09:18am | 22/06/09

The Greens will lose votes through this circus. They would have been better not to have insisted on a debate. This issue will haunt them next election.
The many Australians who work will not accept their representatives behaving like they are in kindygarden forever

Tehkella says:

09:34am | 22/06/09

I hate it when people bring their kids into work - there are a few exceptions who are really well behaved - but babies, come on.  If you can’t afford time away from your child, you shouldn’t have come back to work yet!

Karen says:

02:15am | 23/06/09

Nobody wants to see children or breastfeeding in Parliament, or anywhere for that matter in public. Too many women, especially mothers, just expect the world to bow down to them and give them everything on a platter because they are nurturing the “future generation”. Big deal. That’s been happening for hundreds of years, in case you hadn’t noticed. I was once a child, as were my grandparents. Do you honestly think the world will stop producing if you breeders don’t get paid maternity leave or the right to take your kid into Parliament? I don’t think so. Take responsibility and common sense and stop expecting the rest of the world to accept you and your children with open arms.

Lexi says:

08:42am | 23/06/09

The real issue here is not whether the child should be in the workplace - most people are of the opinion that it’s not professional.

The problem I see is that the major parties are so desperate for the Greens to play nice with them in the Senate, that new policy will be made on having children in the house in order to keep the Greens happy.

Talk about single issue and irrelevant policy that does not do what Senators are there to do - represent the people of their state.

As a woman planning children, I do not consider it appropriate for me to bring my children into my workplace and into the boardroom, or its parliamentary equivilant (Senate or House of Reps).

It sounds to me like this senator is rather immature and doesn’t get the notion that women can have it all, but not all at the same time.