A parent’s unpredictable work schedules can complicate child custody arrangements. But, the courts are familiar with how to handle this situation. Decision-makers in child custody cases focus on the child’s best interests rather than favoring a parent who has a traditional work schedule that falls within normal office hours.
When a court makes a decision on child custody arrangements, multiple factors come into consideration that include the child’s needs and each parent’s work schedule. The court may also consider the current and anticipated child care arrangements, along with each parent’s ability to provide a stable environment for the child.
Evaluating unpredictable work schedules tends to be the first step the court takes to reach a decision. Understanding what the rest of the process will look like can help you move forward with reaching an agreeable child custody arrangement that helps your child thrive, even when one or both parents have an unpredictable work schedule.
Looking at How Courts Evaluate an Unpredictable Work Schedule
A court will usually begin by assessing whether a parent’s employment schedule impacts their ability to provide their child with consistent care. Since the courts understand that working is important for financially supporting a child, you shouldn’t expect to be penalized for doing what you feel is best as a parent.
Unpredictable work schedules can take several different forms that include rotating shifts, needing to work on weekends or being on-call. Some careers also demand employees to be accommodating of last-minute scheduling changes. Or, you might have a career that requires you to travel or be away from home for extended amounts of time.
Although these types of situations create challenges for child custody arrangements, it is usually possible to find a solution. Since spending time with both parents is typically in the child’s best interest, the court tends to focus on finding ways to make custody and visiting work.
As a parent with unpredictable working hours, your biggest focus will tend to be demonstrating that you can still meet your child’s needs. Keep in mind that the court will also look at additional factors, such as your child’s age, school schedule and extracurricular activities to make a decision.
For instance, being able to show who will care for your child while you work overnight can help your case. The same is also true regarding having a backup plan for someone to take your child to their sports events when you work weekends or evening hours.
Creating a Child Custody Schedule That Accommodates Irregular Work Hours
Parenting plans are customizable. While many jurisdictions offer parenting-time schedules that follow traditional every-other-weekend plans, they aren’t meant to be a solution that everyone can follow. Instead, you’ll need to discuss possible arrangements with the other parent.
In your customized parenting plan, you might want to include a flexible schedule that your child and the other parent can follow. For instance, you might want to discuss how you can give advance notice when work schedules change. Some parents choose to follow a custody arrangement that includes blocks of parenting time, along with holiday and school-break plans.
If you or the other parent’s work schedule can cause large amounts of missed time with your child, then you could also write make-up parenting time into the plan. With an unpredictable work schedule, one of the most important things to do is carve out a clear communication plan to follow. When a court sees that both parents are prioritizing predictability and stability to the fullest extend possible, you are more likely to receive an approval for your plan.
Exploring Childcare Options and Backup Plans
Working parents often need to rely on backup plans for child care. But, you may need to bolster your current childcare options when you are going through a divorce. Try to pull together as many resources as possible for handling unexpected scheduling events. You might rely on a daycare that offers extended hours to manage large blocks of overtime in your work schedule.
Relying on in-home child caregivers, such as babysitters and nannies, might be an option that allows you to work overnight without disrupting your child’s schedule. Grandparents, other relatives and trusted family friends are a few more resources you can rely on to help in a sudden childcare crunch. For older kids, you might also need to consider transportation options to maintain your child’s normal sports and school schedule when you might need to work.
As you create your backup resources, keep in mind that many courts will grant the other parent the right of first refusal. This means that you may need to allow the other parent the opportunity to care for your child before you schedule childcare services. Once again, this is an area where you might need to seek legal advice to ensure that you and the other parent are clear on how this will look if you experience a work schedule-related emergency.
Knowing How to Strengthen Your Custody Case as a Working Parent
As a working parent who has an irregular schedule, your first step to strengthening your custody case is to begin documenting your hours. Gather as much information as possible about how your work schedule looks, such as your employer’s scheduling policies and any anticipated changes for the future.
Once you have this information, you can reach out to an experienced divorce lawyer like the attorneys at Davis & Associates who can help you put together a realistic parenting plan. Being able to demonstrate a history of caring for your child during an unpredictable work schedule can also help bolster your case. Your lawyer can help you know how to answer common questions that a court may ask, such as how you plan to provide care for your child if you need to suddenly go to work when you are on call or need to work overtime.
As you create your parenting plan, remember that the ultimate goal is to create a custody plan that upholds your child’s best interests. By working carefully through each step of the process, you should emerge from the custody case with a detailed plan that outlines exactly how you can care for your child and maintain your financial obligations as a parent with custody.
