Back in 1990, a 24-year-old HR clerk made a bold suggestion during a departmental lunch. That person was me. I proposed that our company amend its leave policies to allow parents to use sick time to care for their ill children.
Silence blanketed the room. Forks froze in midair, and eyeballs darted back and forth as my co-workers sought visual confirmation that they had heard me correctly. I could not have generated a more dramatic response if I had suggested that we cover our heads with whipped cream.
