Posted on 05/06/2008 12:22:53 PM PDT by redreno
OCEAN TOWNSHIP, N.J. (AP) ― Ocean Township has denied a pregnant patrolwoman's request for light duty. Officer Sonia Henriques is concerned about putting her unborn child at risk and her doctor agrees. She is two months pregnant.
(Excerpt) Read more at wcbstv.com ...
I don't think the tax paying public needs to pick up the slack if she is given special perks while she's pregnant. Surely she knew what the policies were when she joined the police force.
Fine. Then when the baby is injured in some way, the department will be paying her big bucks. Most LE departments place pregancies or other medicals on desk duty for the duration without batting an eye.
Please note this is said as a very independent woman, but this is precisely why women need not be police officer, fire fighters, or in the military.
Two months, she isn’t even showing. Unless this is some sort of high risk pg due to her health status, she shouldn’t get desk duty until 6+ months. Suck it up girl!
Agree...this calls for unpaid medical leave... if you can’t do the job you shouldn’t get full pay for “light duty”...there is little “light duty” in police work.
Use vacation time, sick leave or whatever then take unpaid leave — the employer or in this case tax payers shouldn’t pay the freight if she can’t do the job.
I know a woman that worked for U.S.Customs (firearm & badge job) that was allowed to go on light duty with every one of her 4 pregnancies, then she always took the full family leave after the birth of her babies. It seemed she was never available for regular duty for about 6 years. She then decided to quit to stay at home with her children. She has been gone about 4 years; I ran into her the other day and she told me she is trying to get rehired by Customs- with no success, and she can’t figure out why.
Two months, they’re kidding right? I worked until I went to the hospital to deliver every time. Is it me?
How is it different than having children at home and being on the job daily... anything can happen. When she took the job, she knew what it was about.
I must be missing something, is this an extreme high risk pregnancy due to a medical condition? If so, should she be on duty period?
Check this out from another article:
Friend explained that there have been many examples over the years where male officers have been placed on light duty for various illnesses and injuries.
WTF? Illness, Injuries?
http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080506/NEWS/805060450/1001/NEWS
What does the NYPD do (even though it doesn’t apply township wise, but legal-wise)?
I still haven’t found the underlying medical condition... it can’t be because she’s two months pregnant.
Here’s her picture btw:
http://www.oceantwp.org/police/PR08182006MADDAward250.html
so every other person on the force has to take extra duty so she can have a baby?
Hey, cops used to get light duty for 6 weeks following hemmorhoid surgery, hernia, etc....I’m sure they can accomodate a desk duty job for awhile
To be used by light weights in Gov't employ which in NJ is everybody.
Amen and Double-Dog-Dittos from another independent woman!
I had a wonderful young lady who served as my assistant.
One morning about 11:00 she told me she wasn’t feling well and was going home for the day.
At 3:00 she delivered her first born.
If they accommodate other officers who have minor medical issues, then they should accommodate her. But frankly, if I were a female cop and got pregnant, I’d just look for another job. Not only would I not want to put my unborn child at risk, but I wouldn’t want to put my post-born child at risk of losing his/her mommy.
Spc. Monica Lin Brown from Lake Jackson Texas of 82 Airborne, awarded the Silver Star for courage in action against the enemy. anyway, something to think about.......
Then she should have an abortion so some of you wont have to suffer this disgraceful indignity.
Thank you. I think when situations like these arise, they really do highlight the weaknesses that women have. Women sometimes mistakenly believe that equality means that they have to be “let in” to every profession a man does. I think this neglects to take into cosideration the obvious differences between men and women, and takes away the areas women are typically better at than men, because they’re so focused on being as good as men are in other areas. Women can be equal and still maintain their feminity.
But she’s a girl and That gun is probably full of water
My sister-in-law was teaching a summer class at a community college when she went into labor with my nephew between the classroom and the library.LOL She was back in the classroom for Summer Session II. If women want to work while having children, they need to understand what is involved with that decision.
Unless she is having some sort of unusual problems with her pregnancy I see no need for light duty for this lady- at least at this point.
There’s always exceptions. But in the military... raw, physical strength can be the difference between victory and defeat. The difference between life and death for cops, firemen... and the citizens they protect.
Easy..
“Pregnant N.J. Cop Denied Bid For Light Duty”
“... but this is precisely why women need not be police officer, fire fighters, or in the military.”
Ok she should get an abortion since she has really offended a lot of people by being a women, a cop, pregnant, and having the nerve to request light duty or some combo of the above. She gets rid of the child, and can keep to her job or maybe she can be fired for being a cop and getting pregnant, or maybe we should have a law preventing women form being there because this might happen. Whatever gets us to that happy place.
So unless I missed your point, why do you think women need not be police officer, fire fighters, or in the military?
They would do it for a guy who slipped in the shower at home and hurt his back....
If we are to have women in the workforce, then we have to anticipate babies.....and help protect them.....
If you are such an “independent” woman as stated, not allowing women to compete in the workforce would mean that women are not equal to men for working status. So how unequal? Maybe a woman is only 3/5ths of a man?
If so, what rights are you willing to give up? Vote? How about blogging?
As of this moment, FR is only for men! Women's opinions not wanted.....
Oh, BTW, you need to get back into your Burka....
(For those who missed the point this was absurdity to illustrate a point)
Actually, you did miss my point. The physical differences between women and men, of which being capable of being pregnant is one, is why women should not be in such positions. My intended point was actually directed more at the request for special duty/treatment rather than the physical “disability” (and yes pregnancy is considered a “disability” as I can receive short term disability benefits for maternity leave).
FYI, merely having an abortion wouldn’t fix the problem anyway, as pregnancy is a condition capable of repitition, plus she’d have to have down time for the “procedure”.
I’ll finish my point later. Unfortunately, my gender doesn’t preclude me from working :(.
Of course the aren't only 3/5ths of a man.
But many police and fire departments only require women to be 3/5ths as strong as a man.
They have lowered there physical entrance requirements to accommodate affirmative action.
If he intentionally slipped? Really?
We women don’t want special treatment, except when we want it....
This is different than a guy asking for light duty because he’s injured on the job. This is something she did to herself.
I just read the article for a second time and I failed to find where it said she has twenty years in . Could you point out where you got that info
I agree with you. However, I’m wondering what the legal aspects could be for the police department. Could a Judge or jury find the police department liable for failing to accommodate a pregnancy-related disability?
Nice try....pull a statement out of context then try to have it support your view.....
Women are going to get pregnant, is this not something you want? Maybe all women in their childbearing years should be legislated into not working?
Geez, The LEO in question asked for light duty not time off.
That’s because it’s not in the article.
Many LEO’s stay with the same force through retirement due to union senority. Chances are she will have a long career with the Township. The 20 year reference was in the abstract extrapulating the norm of what their Human Resources group should be looking at. It cost’s a lot of money to recruit and train a LEO.
Whether she makes it to retirement or not isn’t the question.
Pregnancy is normal for women of child bearing age and should be anticipated (if not celebrated).
She wasn’t asking to be sent home for 10 months, just to be shifted to desk duty to protect the child.
If they give light duty to other cops for temporary disabilities, then they have to for her—if her doctor says she has a temporary disability.
She intentionally got pregnant and requested light duty. Using your analogy, if a guy intentionally hurt his back in the shower, can he expect light duty?
My point is, you shouldn't compare accidental behavior with intentional behavior.
Besides, what about the practicality? Sure a pregnant woman can drive a vehicle, but how long before she can't run effectively, overcome an attacker, or hold on to an escaping perpetrator? Can she really protect the public in her condition? Sure, maybe in the early months, but not later. It all depends on the woman and the disability.
Don’t read very well.
Men don’t intentionally injure themselves in order to get light duty.
And also thank you for pushing the feminist agenda line that pregnancy is a disability. Pregancy is not a disability. You trying to equate it as such tells me exactly where you are coming from. You sound more like Barack who says it’s a punishment.
Well said! My thoughts exactly!!
Your analogy that pregnancy is the same as an elective procedure is flawed.
You are correct that most people “elect” when they become pregnant. However the fact is that only women bear this responsibility in the work place.
As a society, women are allowed to work in almost all job positions that a man is; it would disingenuous to believe that they will not become pregnant at sometime during their employment.
The question is how do you handle it? I can draw only two conclusions from your response. First, pregnant women should quit heir job. -OR- Second, she should “suck it up” and perform the job at the full capacity she was hired regardless of the welfare of the child.
Don’t disagree that on the surface equality means equal treatment.
A man electing to have a medical procedure would be afforded “light duty” if medically necessary. A dozen or so guys at my office who injured themselves in weekend activities received such restricted duty treatment.
Pregnancy is a medical condition and unless we as a society want to restrict women in jobs ( orthe type of jobs)during their childbearing years, we need to treat pregnancy as such.
Two months pregnant and she wants special treatment? That doesn’t make sense unless she has some underlying medical problem. Maybe she is way overweight and can’t walk well. Need more facts.
Light duty 7 months before the elective procedure? Nope.
"As a society, women are allowed to work in almost all job positions that a man is; it would disingenuous to believe that they will not become pregnant at sometime during their employment"
I don't believe that. But "becoming pregnant" is not the issue here.
"The question is how do you handle it? I can draw only two conclusions from your response. First, pregnant women should quit heir job. -OR- Second, she should “suck it up†and perform the job at the full capacity she was hired regardless of the welfare of the child."
If the welfare of the unborn child is an issue with the mother, then she can take an unpaid leave of absence.
Treat women the same as they would treat men with certain conditions. Do you think they would put a male cop on the beat if he had just had hernia surgery? Nope. They would put him on light duty until his doc declared him fit for full duty. Whether officially disabled or not, things a woman might do in performance of her job as a cop could jeopardize her pregnancy. You want examples--I can give them. I could make some judgments about you, too, but I don't know you well enough to do that. Neither do you know me well enough to call me a feminist.
She is pregnant intentionally. The guy getting the hernia didn’t intentionally give himself a hernia. Guys who get disabled may be acting safe or stupid when they hurt themselves, but nobody except the insane do it to intentionally hurt themselves. Pregnancy is a condition she chose to put herself in.
And I re-read your post, it is clear that you were equating pregnancy with disability.
And you do sound like a liberal feminist, whether you are or not. You quack like a duck, you’re gonna be called a duck.
No, pregnancy in itself is not a disability. I plainly stated that. When I was pregnant with my second son, my blood pressure skyrocketed in my 3rd month. THAT caused a disability. I was fired from my job because I was disabled (I received long-term disability payments). However, a man in my department had serious heart trouble and was out of work for several months and they kept his job open for him. I expect fairness, not special treatment. Feminists expect special treatment.
I expect fairness, not special treatment.
Thank you. A very fair comment. If others in her police department have received light duties, while recovering from illness, then it’s only fair that she receive the same treatment. Regardless if the department has a no specific policy.
you’d be surprised how many petite women who are cops. all in the name of progress, affirmative action and civil rights.
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