Parents do require different treatment than non parents. I'm not really addressing the OP per se, but rather the people complaining about their coworkers being granted leeway that they are not.
Like it or not, it does take a village to raise a child and we are all part of that village. You picking up a coworker's slack is part of your responsibility in raising the next generation so the coworker is free to do the more important job of raising their kids.
A kid's doctor's appointment, first day of kindergarten, an illness...it's all way more important than any job. People with young kids also have to leave on time. They have to relieve their child minders, cook their kids a nutritious supper and get them into bed all by the time people without kids have kicked back on the couch to watch a couple Seinfeld reruns. Plus the parents have to be having fun with their kids, teach their kids and discipline their kids. It's a Herculean job and responsibility.
And when you see your coworker leave early, don't resent them because you think you have to work harder because of their absence. No matter what you do, it's 10x easier than the 24/7 job they are going home to. The job you share with them...it's a welcome break in their day from the job of raising kids that is actually hard (I'm talking parents of kids that are 0-2.5 or so).
I used to think like you guys before I had kids when I was in my 20s. Now I know better. I get where you are coming from, but frankly you just don't have enough life experience to know how wrong you are.
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