» Network Home

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