It's working for Anonymous
MELROSE, MA
2 children
My husband's company gave them twenty days of paid childcare using Care.com and some reimbursement forms... we haven't received the money yet, but when we do, that will be a huge help.
Which of the following are you trying to fit with your job/career? ________________________________________________________________________
Caring for elementary age children (~6-10 years)How has COVID-19 impacted your job/work responsibilities? How has it impacted your responsibility to care for your family?
My husband and I are fortunate that we both have professional jobs that are relatively easy to perform remotely from home. But when the schools closed, we lost our childcare for our two elementary-aged kids as well. We managed for a while by staggering our workdays but eventually needed to hire an almost-full-time nanny so that we could perform our jobs adequately and with less stress and sleep deprivation. That change has been wonderful for us, although financially it's a very tight squeeze.I should also say that removing my and my husband's commutes has been amazing. We have so much more time to be with the kids and get things done. If we have a light day at work, with not a lot to get done, we can take a break and hang out with the kids. That has been wonderful and it's something I would really love to preserve after the pandemic ends.
Was there ever a time when you felt there was an unspoken barrier or preconceived notion that interfered with your job or career? Please share.
I have not felt barriers coming from society at large, but it has very much been an issue within our marriage. Whether I'm working 4 or 40 hours a week, everything related to raising our children has fallen to me. Whether it's scheduling doctor's appointments, remembering things for school, or coming up with a new plan to manage a problem behavior, I do 100% of the mental, emotional, and physical labor.What is one thing you wish your employer understood about you and your life?
My employer does understand all that I am juggling. I'm in a female-dominated, family-friendly profession. I wish my husband's company understood the pressures that parents are under, though.
If you could change one thing about your job to make it easier for you to fit work with your other professional, educational, or caregiver responsibilities, what would it be?
I'd love to continue working from home after the pandemic is over. Not 5 days a week -- but maybe 3 or even 4?What is something your employer has done well to make it easier to fit work with your other professional, educational, or caregiver responsibilities?
Nothing really, except being patient and understanding. And allowing us to work from home indefinitely. My husband's company gave them twenty days of paid childcare using Care.com and some reimbursement forms... we haven't received the money yet, but when we do, that will be a huge help.HOW EASY WAS IT TO PUT (AND MAINTAIN) A CHILDCARE/ELDERCARE ARRANGEMENT TOGETHER AND DID IT WORK FOR YOUR FAMILY?
Our childcare arrangement has changed every year since having kids, so it has changed about 10 times. I'll answer for our latest arrangement. It was difficult to decide to spend a ton of money on a nanny, and my husband would never have thought to hire someone if I hadn't advocated for it. But I'm so glad we did. The positive impact on our mental health has been huge.Of all your professional, educational, or caregiver responsibilities, which creates the most stress with your job/career? Please share why?
I would say that managing my kids' mental health/behavioral/educational needs is the biggest challenge to my career.
Thinking about fitting your job/career with your professional, educational, or caregiver responsibilities, is there anything that used to be manageable that no longer is? Is there anything that used to be able to count on, that you no longer can?
Since Covid, everything. The loss of full-time, in-person school has been devastating for our family. The remote/hybrid replacement that our district came up with was simply not meeting our kids' needs, and they were suffering big time and not learning. We pulled them out and are homeschooling them with the help of the nanny. So the academics are being taken care of, but losing in-person school meant losing structure, routine, friends, a community, peer norms, and the chance to practice self-control and responsibility in the classroom. Behaviorally, it's been a huge setback for our youngest. I can't emphasize enough how important classroom learning was to his social-emotional development, and it's been all taken away.