Archive for May, 2009

What’s New From the Network?

Karen Corday May 29th, 2009

New from the Network:

New, free work and family content on the web:

2009 Sloan Network Panel Meeting on Global Family Responsive Policies

Judi Casey May 27th, 2009

On April 15, 2009, the Sloan Network convened their 2009 Panel Meeting in Utrecht, the Netherlands on “Intended and Unintended Consequences of Work-Family Policy: Lessons through International Comparison.” Every year, the Network hosts this type of meeting, a small invitation-only event of policy makers, academic researchers and employers on a critical work-family issue. Last year’s panel meeting was on Employed Parents Caring for Children with Disabilities, while the 2007 meeting focused on Older and Younger Workers: How Does Age Matter?

Attendees represented countries from around the globe and included Marian Baird, Ph.D. (Australia); Antoinette Brakel - van der Klei (the Netherlands); Judi Casey, MSW (US); Laura DenDulk, Ph.D. (the Netherlands); Jeanne Fagnani, Ph.D. (France); Linda Haas, Ph.D. (US /Sweden); Suzan Lewis, Ph.D. (UK); Uxio Malvido (Spain); Joya Misra, Ph.D. (US); Birgit Pfau-Effinger, Ph.D. (Germany); Tine Rostgaard, Ph.D. (Denmark); Moshe Semyonov, Ph.D. (Israel/US); Stephen Sweet, Ph.D. (US); Olivier Thevenon, Ph.D. (France); and Monique Valcour, Ph.D. (US).

The goal of the meeting was to identify variations in work-family policies among countries and the forces that shape these variations as well as the extent to which these policies precipitate intended outcomes of supporting working families, their employers, and national economies. In addition, the meeting highlighted some of the unintended consequences of family responsive policies such as the negative impacts on gender equity, career advancement, employer needs, workplace cultures, fertility rates, and international labor flows.

Attendees explored the distinguishing features of the work-family policy framework of various countries and the cultural, economic and political context that facilitated (or erected barriers) to the initiation, structure, and implementation of these family responsive policies. By comparing observations across societies, the attendees considered whether these outcomes are inevitable or can be mediated or resolved through policy reconfiguration.

The meeting concluded with a discussion of the best strategy to move forward with these collective observations as well as the types of products that might be created to share these conversations. An Executive Summary will be released this summer. Please stay tuned for more information!

Grim Prospects for Dual Academic Careers

Featured Guest Blogger May 26th, 2009

Stephen Sweet, Ph.D. is the Teaching Resources Specialist at the Sloan Work and Family Research Network and an Associate Professor of sociology at Ithaca College. Please note that the views of our guest bloggers do not necessarily reflect the views of the Sloan Work and Family Research Network.

What happens to individuals who are trying to enter into the labor force when jobs are scarce?  This is the concern confronting many of my graduating students, who are trying to enter a job market that can best be described as “grim.”  For them, economic insecurity does not come from the prospects of job loss, but from the uncertain prospects of finding a good job in the first place.

Phyllis Moen, Peter Meiksins and I have argued that a commonly held conception of workers as unencumbered individuals underplays the constraints faced by those in insecure jobs.  Consider, for instance the case of new Ph.D.s.  My colleagues who teach in some of the very best graduate level institutions are reporting that few (and in one case none!) of their Ph.D. graduates are finding jobs.  The reason is not only that there are too many Ph.D.s seeking too few jobs, but also that the jobs that were anticipated to be created have evaporated.  For example, the American Sociological Association reports that in comparison to 2006, when there were 610 jobs listed for assistant professors, in 2008, there were only 370 jobs listed.  Unfortunately, I would estimate that the searches for about half of those jobs were cancelled after the advertisements were placed.   But that is half the story.  When new Ph.D.s graduate from their programs, most are in relationships.  Many have started families (or are at the anticipatory stage of family formation) and they will seek jobs thinking of the right life stage-institution-community fit.  Complicating their search further is the fact that many (roughly 1/3) are in relationships with other academics. This means that their career movements will be tightly tied to the career goals of another worker, who may also be seeking employment.  This career convoy is navigated in a job market where most of the job opportunities have dried up.  Grim indeed.

There is a very sad natural experiment going on right now.  What happens to individuals who prepare for upwards of 10-15 years to enter into a career, only to find a closed gate at the entry point?  And for those lucky enough to land one of the few jobs out there, what happens to the careers of their partners and to their relationships?  This could make for a very good study, performed under natural conditions that we all wish were not present.

For more about job insecurity, see my Work and Family Encyclopedia entry as well as a related definition in the Work and Family Glossary.

What’s New From the Network?

Karen Corday May 22nd, 2009

New from the Network:

New Workshop/Class Activities:

New, free work and family content on the web:

What is the Status of Paid Sick Days Legislation in Milwaukee?

Julie Schwartz Weber May 20th, 2009

While Washington D.C. and San Francisco are currently the only cities providing paid sick days to their constituents,  there is one city, Milwaukee, WI, that has a unique story about similar legislation, as I shared with Smart Money magazine reporter, Aleksandra Todorova

Last November, 69% of Milwaukeeans (approximately 157,117 people) voted in favor of a paid sick days ordinance.  This legislation, similar to existing legislation in D.C. and San Francisco, requires employers to provide workers with time off to tend to their own medical treatment or preventive care, as well as to tend to those medical needs of a close family member.  Like D.C.’s legislation, Milwaukee’s ordinance also includes time off to care for one’s own or a family member’s medical/safety needs related to domestic violence.

However, while the ordinance formally passed, on December 22, 2008, the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, Inc. (MMAC) filed a lawsuit in the Milwaukee County Circuit Court challenging the legality of it.  Part and parcel to their lawsuit, MMAC requested that the court issue a temporary injunction to prohibit enforcement of the ordinance until the court made a decision on the ordinance’s legality.  This temporary injunction was granted, and today, the people of Milwaukee await the determination of the court.

A hearing on a permanent injunction (as opposed to the temporary one now in place) occurred on May 11th.  While it is unclear how Judge Thomas R. Cooper will rule, he has indicated that whatever he decides “[t]here’s a dead certainty that the case will go to the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court.” He expects to reach a decision by mid-June.  We will keep you posted!

Times–and minds–are changing

Featured Guest Blogger May 18th, 2009

Maggie Jackson is an award-winning author and journalist known for her penetrating coverage of U.S. social issues. She writes the popular “Balancing Acts” column in the Sunday Boston Globe, and her work has also appeared in The New York Times, Gastronomica, and on National Public Radio. Her latest book, Distracted: The Erosion of Attention and the Coming Dark Age, details the steep costs of our current epidemic deficits of attention while revealing the astonishing scientific discoveries that can help us rekindle our powers of focus in a world of speed and overload. Please note that the views of our guest bloggers do not necessarily reflect the views of the Sloan Work and Family Research Network.

The title of the Families and Work Institute’s latest national study is “Times are Changing.” But the report easily could have been dubbed “Minds are Changing.”

One of the most striking elements of the fascinating report, which I covered recently in my Boston Globe “Balancing Acts” column, is the dismantling of American veneration for the “male-breadwinner” family model - even among older generations. Not all that long ago — in 1977 — 75% of men and nearly half of women believed that it’s better for men to earn the money and for women to care for home and family. Back then, gender boundaries were clear and distinct, and cracks in this belief system were largely unwelcome.

Now, about 60 percent of each gender reject the idea that men should be breadwinners and women should stick to homemaking. Strikingly, nearly half of workers 63 and older now reject the traditional model, up from just 10%  in 1977. Another sign of change: 80% of women and about 65% of men now agree that a mom working outside the home can have just as good a relationship with her kids as a stay-at-home mom.

Surely, attitudes aren’t everything. Actions speak louder than words, and it’s important to note that American gender roles are changing in execution, as much as in attitude. Last year, women held 49% of the nation’s jobs, and women in dual-earner households contribute 44% of family income. Men spend more time taking care of the home and with kids than in the past. A stay-at-home dad is no shock anymore.

But belief systems also matter. A little girl who thinks she can’t be president won’t grow up and run for office. A young dad who treats caring for his kids as babysitting likely has a narrow definition of fatherhood. In the biology world, there’s a word for these powerful and long-lasting cultural ideas. They are “memes,” elements of a culture or system of
behavior that are passed down by imitation, not genetics.

So when minds are changing, the world is shifting. And when it comes to loosening rigid gender roles, that’s a very good thing.

What’s New From the Network?

Karen Corday May 15th, 2009

New, free work and family content online:

Updates Available: Bills by Theme

Featured Guest Blogger May 14th, 2009

Mary Curlew is a Policy Assistant for the Sloan Work and Family Research Network.

The Sloan Work and Family Network is excited to announce the release of three new additions to their Bills by Theme (BBT) series. These new products focus on current proposed legislation concerning flexible work schedules, part-time work, and telework.

The Sloan Network started the BBT series to give policy makers an overview of work-family bills that have been proposed in various states during a specific legislative session. However, the BBT materials go a step further and breakdown the introduced bills into subtopics based on the wording and focus of the bill. We hope you find this helpful in understanding not only what bills are being introduced, but how they are being introduced. For example, upon looking at the BBT on flexible work schedules and telework, you may notice that some states address these two issues through an environmental lens, while others are peering through a labor relations and employee bargaining lens.

Of course, we don’t speculate on why these bills vary, or which focus is more effective or important. That’s up to you and your state’s policy needs. What do you think about the wording and focus of these bills? Also, let us know if you find this format helpful or have suggestions for other topics. We’d love to hear your thoughts and insight.

Swine Flu and Work-Family

Julie Schwartz Weber May 13th, 2009

Of late, our country and the rest of the world are confronting the realities of living with the possible global pandemic of swine flu. In America alone, as of May 4th, more than 1000 confirmed or probable cases of swine flu have been reported from 44 states. While the public health and medical considerations are rightfully getting a lot of air time, there are a host of work-family issues that emerge from this situation, including:

  • Paid sick days:  The CDC, as well as state and local officials are asking workers and sick children suspected of contracting swine flu to stay home from work and school to prevent the possible spread of infection. However, with more than half of the country’s workers lacking a single paid sick day, and even more without time off to care for family members, including children, this request presents a potentially dire situation. Working families are forced to choose between adhering to a government public health mandate and staying home to care for their sick loved one or themselves or losing a paycheck — or even their job — by opting to stay home.Even if a particular employer or state has a paid sick days policy, or you happen to live in California or New Jersey, where paid family leave policies are being implemented, there are serious questions about whether these policies would provide coverage for healthy children whose school is closed due to a public health issue. Additionally, the federal Family and Medical Leave Act would likely not allow for even unpaid time off for most parents to care for children, as it mandates time off to care for a “seriously ill” child; here, most of the children staying home from school are well.
  • Child care:   Under the direction of the President and public health officials, some schools have been closed due to children or staff within the school having swine flu.  While most recently the CDC recommends not closing schools “unless there is a magnitude of faculty or student absenteeism that interferes with the school’s ability to function”, the fact that a possible pandemic did — and can again — lead to the closing of schools, triggers questions about child care. With most caregivers in the workplace, and few employers providing paid sick days and/or paid leave, how can parents take time off from work to tend to their children in the event of no school?

The Unexpected Benefits of Cutting Back

Featured Guest Blogger May 12th, 2009

Maggie Jackson is an award-winning author and journalist known for her penetrating coverage of U.S. social issues. She writes the popular “Balancing Acts” column in the Sunday Boston Globe, and her work has also appeared in The New York Times, Gastronomica, and on National Public Radio. Her latest book, Distracted: The Erosion of Attention and the Coming Dark Age, details the steep costs of our current epidemic deficits of attention while revealing the astonishing scientific discoveries that can help us rekindle our powers of focus in a world of speed and overload. Please note that the views of our guest bloggers do not necessarily reflect the views of the Sloan Work and Family Research Network.

Slow is hot. In recent years, movements have sprouted to explore slow food, slow sex, and slow family living. It’s a bit hard to fathom what exactly “slow” means in all these contexts. There’s a bit of pro-green living here, anti-materialism, mindful awareness, and community-building, all of which loosely adds up to a slowing down in the tempo of life, or at least finding a speed other than high gear. The idea is hard to define, yet also hard to ignore at this moment in time, when so many complex, high-gear economic, medical, education and other systems seem broken.

Curious about the intersection between the recession and rise of slow, I recently interviewed families around Boston for my Globe column about whether their personal budget cuts had inspired slower living. The answer was a resounding yes. Some parents were already trying to simplify, by downshifting kid schedules or getting more eco-conscious, and job losses/pay cuts invigorated these efforts. Others had to cut spending fast, and were surprised by how good it felt to cut back on “must-have” activities, fancy vacations, or even hired help. For these parents, slowing down meant depending on their own resourcefulness more than had for a long time. One mom gushed with pride at making her own laundry detergent.

It’s intriguing that for many families, slowing down means stepping “off the grid,” i.e. uncoupling from a dependence on complex consumer and cultural value systems. According to anthropologists such as Joseph Tainter, a widespread desire to go it alone is a sign that a complex civilization is crumbling. When highly evolved cultures begin to break down, citizens have little incentive to contribute to the society’s complex systems and infrastructures. Cultivating one’s own vegetable patch becomes more alluring than buying from the big-box market.

Could “slow” be a harbinger of a simplification writ large, aka a dark age? Dark ages are messy, difficult, times of cultural simplification that are often followed by renaissances. It will be interesting to see where “slowing down” takes us now.

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