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Featured Guest Blogger June 29th, 2009

In 2008, Christina Barlowe founded LifeWork Alliance. The organization was formed to address the paradigm shift that is reshaping today’s workforce. The mission is to institute and promote open dialogue between organizations and working parents. Nearly two decades of professional corporate experience, coupled with an MBA and a Masters in Social Work, form the well-rounded skill set necessary to head the innovative organization that is LifeWork Alliance. Christina has a four-year-old son and a newly adopted little boy who have reshaped her life and been her source of inspiration. Please note that the views of our guest bloggers do not necessarily reflect the views of the Sloan Work and Family Research Network.

I had this bright idea about how I would build a life with my partner and how things would become bigger and better as our careers grew and our family grew. Sure, I would work, but I would be able to scale back during those tender early years for my children, because of course my husband’s career would be blossoming. And then it happened– 2007, that is.  Most people didn’t speak the word “recession” until late 2008. For those of us in the New York area, however, the decline in stability and rise in fear happened about a year in advance. My husband lost his job, as many people did, and we saw it as the opportunity that would allow us to explore other options for him and for us. We quickly discovered a few problems with this plan: 1) We still needed to pay the mortgage as we were “exploring,” and 2) Things become increasingly harder at home because our usual roles had changed greatly. As much as we like to think that we are not gender role-specific in this day and age, it is a simple fact of conditioning that we still are bound to these roles, however loosely. We have slowly adapted to me being the primary breadwinner and he being the primary caregiver. Sure, there is jealously and resentment and even envy at times from both sides.

What has been more challenging than either one of these roles, though, have been the roles within the marriage. Who are we now? It is clearly different that what we were when we married and what we imagined we would become. Do we like these new people? Do we have a choice? I have found that communication, as clichéd as it sounds, is the key to mental and emotional survival in these circumstances. My husband is a wonderful father, and men in general are more involved with their children today than they were in the past, which is a blessing for all involved. Even if there are new rules that have been bestowed upon us in this new economy, the rules will always shift. It is an individual’s ability to adapt to those new roles; that is the necessary skill for survival.

• Child Care , Definition of Family , Mothers and Fathers
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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.

• Mothers and Fathers , Research , Workplace
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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.

• Mothers and Fathers
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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?

• Telework: Numerous people have highlighted the importance of employees, especially Federal Government employees, to be able to continue operations in the face of catastrophes, including pandemics. In the event that workplaces are closed for public health reasons, telecommuting becomes a viable, if not the only, solution for continuing operations. Moreover, for parents of healthy children home from school, telecommuting becomes one way to continue working while simultaneously securing their child’s safety and care.

• Child Care , Medical Leave , Mothers and Fathers , Policy , Sick Leave , Telework , Workplace
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Featured Guest Blogger April 27th, 2009

In 2008, Christina Barlowe founded LifeWork Alliance. Nearly two decades of professional corporate experience, coupled with an MBA and a Masters in Social Work, form the well-rounded skill set necessary to head the innovative organization that is LifeWork Alliance. This combination of extensive real world expertise with a comprehensive education results in a keen understanding of, and passion for, the needs of individual parents as well as the expectations of the organization. Christina has a four year old son who has reshaped her life and has been her source of inspiration. Please note that the views of our guest bloggers do not necessarily reflect the views of the Sloan Work and Family Research Network.

When I was in college and even graduate school (the first time), I had great ideas about what my life would look like. The career, the husband, the kids, the house, the trips and then BAM !

And so it all came, not necessarily in that order. The only problem was integrating those parts of my life proved challenging, or more like close to impossible. Not only was I having trouble balancing it all, I was firmly planted in my new reality but not enjoying any part of the dream. My identity became compartmentalized for thw sake of self preservation as I was thrust either by choice or circumstance, into my various new roles of boss, employee, friend, mother, wife, daughter, professional, and student. Finally, the roller coaster came to a screeching halt after my son turned a year old. I was clueless where I was and how I got there.  It was time for change but I had no idea how to navigate it and the definition of what I wanted changed daily.

This new reality is more prevalent today than ever. Women coming out of college have decisions to make in order to chart their course of establishing their careers and lives. If they are forward thinking, they are looking at how to integrate those careers into a future partnership, extended family unit, and possibly motherhood.

How do you know what form of work / life balance is right for you? Each person is unique and therefore each person’s needs are different. We can and should educate this next generation with our own road maps. You can stay on the main highway, take the scenic route, or make a detour either willingly or because life just has a way of doing that to you.  Would it not be a critical part of their decision making as they construct the framework for their lives?

It is with this inspirational journey that LifeWork Alliance was formed. The organization was formed to address the paradigm shift that is reshaping today’s workforce. The mission is to institute and promote open dialogue between organizations and working parents. I found a distinct void in any such service or community for that matter when I was working my way up the proverbial ladder, and especially when I started my family. I was confused and stumbling, and when I asked for guidance the expectations of my performance were even more demanding now that I was a mother. Luckily, I used that transformation to create a community both online, in corporate settings, and in off-site workshops where people can not only express their challenge with adjusting to their new lives, but also gain valuable tools and insight. There is nothing more powerful than validation and mutual respect.

• Mothers and Fathers , Scheduling , Spillover , Workplace
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Julie Schwartz Weber April 22nd, 2009

Stereotyped assumptions about working women and families are very much alive and well.  And, importantly, they can lead to viable lawsuits, where employers unlawfully discriminate against workers – for example, fail to promote a worker-mom - because of the employers’ perception that caregiving responsibilities outside of the workplace will interfere with the workers on-the-job performance. A recent decision by the First Circuit Court of Appeals on a Family Responsibilities Discrimination (FRD) case, Chadwick v. Wellpoint, Inc., speaks directly to this idea.

The case history of Chadwick v. Wellpoint, Inc. is as follows:  Maine resident Laurie Chadwick worked at WellPoint, an insurance company, for 9 years. Due to her excellent track record, she was encouraged by her supervisor to apply for a promotion to be Team Lead.  However, after Laurie applied for the promotion, and before the employer filled the Team Lead position, the hiring manager learned that Laurie had 4 children at home, 1 child, age 11, and triplets, age 6.

Upon learning of Laurie’s 4 young children at home, the hiring manager and two other interviewers made a series of remarks that the First Circuit found to be critical to Laurie’s case:

• Shortly before determining who would be Team Lead, the hiring manager learned of Laurie’s triplets and sent Laurie an email saying, “Oh my – I did not know you had triplets.  Bless you!”
• During Laurie’s interview with her former supervisor, she was asked how she would respond if an associate did not complete a project on time.  Frustrated with Laurie’s response, her supervisor stated, “Laurie, you are a mother[.] [W]ould you let your kids off the hook that easy if they made a mess in [their] room[?] [W]ould you clean it or hold them accountable?”
• Ultimately, the hiring manager passed over Laurie, and chose a woman with inferior qualifications and less experience to be Team Lead.  When Laurie asked why she did not get the job, the hiring manager said: “It was nothing you did or didn’t do. It was just that you’re going to school, you have the kids and you just have a lot on your plate right now.”
• Laurie was also told by the hiring manager after the decision was made, “if [the three interviewers] were in your position, they would feel overwhelmed.”

While Laurie’s lawsuit was originally dismissed for failure to state a claim, the First Circuit Court of Appeals recently reviewed the lower court’s decision, reversed it, and remanded the case for trial.

When rendering its decision, the First Circuit Court stated:

“ [A]n employer is not free to assume that a woman, because she is a woman, will necessarily be a poor worker because of family responsibilities. The essence of Title VII in this context is that women have the right to prove their mettle in the work arena without the burden of stereotypes regarding whether they can fulfill their responsibilities.”

Laurie’s story appears to get to the heart of caregiving discrimination.  Laurie was objectively found to be an excellent, hardworking employee over 9 years, and there had never been any allegation or insinuation that her work suffered because of her child care responsibilities.  Still, when the hiring manager learned of her caregiving responsibilities outside of the home, including care for triplet 6 year olds, it seems there was an assumption that her work could suffer, as Laurie’s “plate was full.” Ultimately, it appears that it was the hiring manager’s assumptions (interestingly, the hiring manager and fellow interviewers were all women) about Laurie’s caregiving needs and how they would interfere with Laurie’s work, and not Laurie’s long term work track record, that were the basis for the hiring manager’s decision.

• Family Responsibilities Discrimination , Mothers and Fathers , Policy , Uncategorized
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Featured Guest Blogger March 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.

The news seemed promising: married women, who’ve been contributing a growing share of median family income for years, are becoming crucial breadwinners during the recession.

But taking a closer look at this trend for my Balancing Acts column, I realized that working wives’ new clout isn’t entirely cause for celebration for many dual-earner families.

Many families are depending more on women financially because recent steep layoffs have hit men hardest. And this rejiggering of roles is hurting many families, since women more often work part-time and earn less on average than men in the same jobs. This is just one more reason why families today are so squeezed and couples are under enormous psychological stress.

Speaking with couples in this situation, I could hear terror and desperation in their voices. Many had always sought to be equal providers, or at least to take turns being the main provider. But a layoff steals the power of choice away from people and robs them of their secure feelings about the future.

In the long run, it is promising that women are contributing more to family finances, and that men are doing more at home. But to help families in future, we need equal pay, along with real flexibility in gender roles, so that men and women can adapt their work/home responsibilities both to their desires and to their family’s needs in times of lean and plenty. Such advances could ease some of the pain that many families are experiencing today.

• Mothers and Fathers
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Featured Guest Blogger January 26th, 2009

This post was contributed by Holly McCarthy, who writes on the subject of job search. She invites your feedback at hollymccarthy12 at gmail dot com. Please note that the views of our guest bloggers do not necessarily reflect the views of the Sloan Work and Family Research Network.

During the winter months, working parents can face a variety of situations regarding their children’s health. The cold weather helps speed up the process from the sniffles to a full-blown, debilitating cold. What do you do when the school nurse calls and needs you to come pick up your children?

Many employers realize that children are an employee’s top priority. As a parent, taking care of your children will always be the first concern. However, what’s a parent to do in these tough economic times when taking time off for your children could adversely affect your standing with the company?  What happens if there are other emergencies outside of your immediate family that may require your attention? There are a few things that can be done:

1. Speak with the Boss
   Let your boss know what is going on and what you are doing to remedy the situation.  Offer to work from home and stay in touch while your child gets better—there are many ways to rectify the situation. Being proactive in situations like this usually works out in your favor; if you are willing to tackle the difficult conversations head-on, your boss will often be willing to talk things through with you.

 

2. Take Turns with Your Spouse
   This is a good idea if you feel like you are the go-to parent for emergency pick ups. Employers might be understanding for a while, but eventually tire of you being the one who is always called to come to the rescue. Work things out with your spouse so that they take turns with you. Naturally, some days you may need to swap this duty if something particularly important is going on at work.

 

3. Have an Emergency Back-Up Plan
   While this isn’t going to always be an option, some of us know people who either don’t work or work from home, possibly with a flexible schedule. Perhaps on the days when it is most difficult for you to get away, you can rely on these people to pick up your sick child and take them home.  If you are able to do this, planning for the next couple of days will be far easier and your day will not be truncated.  Finish up your work for the day, inform your employer of your forthcoming absence, and prepare to work from home if necessary.

Many workers have to deal with these kinds of situations all of the time, so know that you’re not alone. Work with your employer and spouse to keep the lines of communication open.

• Child Care , Family Leave , Mothers and Fathers , Sick Leave , Workplace
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Featured Guest Blogger January 19th, 2009

• Flexible Schedules , Mothers and Fathers , Organizations , Scheduling , Spillover , Workplace
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Judi Casey January 14th, 2009

Recently, we’ve had several winter storms in New England. Most of them are the usual snow dumps that close schools for the day and make driving difficult, if not treacherous. These situations can be challenging for working parents, as they are unexpected and there are few options for childcare if one must get to work. Parents often look for care from relatives or family members, neighbors or friends, babysitters, or, if possible, stay at home for the day. Most of the time, this is a one day affair, and with a little bit of luck and ingenuity, a solution is found–although low-wage earners or service employees may find it more problematic to locate alternatives.

On December 12, an ice storm in New Hampshire left 400,000 residents without power, and a state of emergency was declared. Three days later, 164,000 customers were without power, and twelve days later, 9,000 people still didn’t have power. Many had to go to local shelters to stay warm, get a meal or drink of water, or to take a shower. Schools were closed, driving was impossible, and meeting even basic needs was a challenge.

I heard a woman interviewed on the radio who was understandably frazzled and overwhelmed.  She was supposed to be at work, but her kids didn’t have any school. She had already asked family and friends to help her for the first week, but the good will was wearing thin. She was sleeping at a friend’s house, as she did not have power.  As a result, even getting ready for work was a challenge, if she could figure out a childcare option.  Finally, driving conditions seemed somewhat daunting to her with tree limbs in the road and on power lines.

Living in New England, I guess we expect short-term interruptions to our normal work-family schedules due to winter weather, but we may be unprepared for longer term situations. Back-up care can be helpful, but may not be available, and usually requires pre-registration.  Although a significant storm, this was not a dire situation like Hurricanes Rita or Katrina, as there was the assumption that everything would go back to normal in a short time period –however, there were kids who did not go to school on December 12 and first returned after school vacation on January 5, 2009!

What’s a working parent to do? What if your child has no school for a week or longer, but your employer is open and expects you to be at work? What if you work for a public safety or service organization that requires you to work more hours than scheduled to meet coverage needs in an emergency? What if you can’t even stay in your home to wash your uniform or take care of basic personal hygiene?

How do you manage dependent care in an unexpected weather situation? Let us know by answering the poll on our blog or home page.

• Leave , Low Wage , Mothers and Fathers , Organizations , Workplace
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