Balancing work and family is an issue that every family faces, both men and women. Personally, I agree with society when I say that women feel this “juggling act” more so than men. There are many issues to consider about women going to work. Some women go to work because they have no choice and they have to support their children, these would be the single moms of America. Next, you have the women who are part of a “two earner family. These women chose to have a career and a family. Regardless of the circumstance, these women feel more stress and guilt than their male counterparts who are considered the breadwinners of their families, and by society. That is not to say that there are not any single dads out there. In the video “Juggling Work and Family” with Hendrick Smith, they focus not only on single moms, but single dads as well. I think that these fathers have a different view of what so many mothers go through, which many men over-look.
What is considered a good family life? Is it having lots of money? Is it quality time? Is it getting ahead so your children can go to college, so you sacrifice family time? I had both parents at home until the age of 13, but at the same time it was like my dad was not there. He isolated himself from the family for much of my childhood. After that I lived with my brothers and sister in a single mother household. My family may not have had a lot of money, but I think we had a “good family life”. My mom juggled work and family pretty well. I cannot imagine the toll it took on her. My mom found ways to make it to all of our sporting events and extracurricular activities. She found ways to buy us the sporting equipment we needed and keep us clothed and fed. She spent time with us just hanging out watching movies or cooking dinner. One particular memory that will always stick with me was during basketball season of my senior year. We had made it to the 4A State Championship Tournament and my mom could not afford to take the whole week off. So, she would work half a day, drive four hours to get to Phoenix, watch me play, then drive home to do it all again the following day. I think that she did this four days throughout the week. I guess it makes it worth it because we won the championship. My mom has always gone through great lengths to support me and my siblings.
I find it interesting that one of the richest countries in the world cannot find a way to keep kids fed and cared for. According to the “Motherhood Manifesto” 20% of kids live in poverty. These kids and their mothers do not have health care either. Do women “opt out” of the work force or are they “pushed out”? I think they are pushed out. Why do women who do the same work get paid 24% to 44% less than men? Same work, same pay is the way it should be. These women are struggling to make ends meet and they have to cope with and live with the guilt of leaving their kids at home alone. However, I believe there are some benefits that come from being left at home; such as, the kids being more independent, being more self-sufficient, and valuing the time you do have together (Juggling Work and Family). From all the videos and podcasts I have learned that balancing a career and family life is all about trade-offs (Personal Struggle between Work and Home, Juggling Work and Family). But, is it always worth?
The main obstacle that can make it difficult to achieve a healthy balance between work and family are business policies. Not all companies are family friendly. If a business or company will not budge on their policies or flexibility, then most employees have to deal with it and take what they can get. Most single moms cannot afford to lose their jobs so they must adapt and overcome. If the US could follow in the footsteps of the UK, then I think everyone would benefit. Having the flexibility to work while your child is in school or after they have gone to bed would benefit everyone involved. The employees will get the work done and be more loyal to the company for being flexible. The company will benefit by the increases productivity and will save money by not having to re-train employees (Juggling Work and Care).
Referring back to the video “Juggling Work and Family” I would say that changes in traditional gender roles have made work and family issues more complex. The parents in the video refer to “not having enough time” and that the family “can’t keep up”. In traditional roles it was easy, the man went to work and the woman stayed home to take care of the family and home. Since, the 1970 family time together has shrunk by 22%. How much of that is lost in transit alone? It is clear that “family and work are not in synch” (Juggling Work and Family).
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You did a great job of addressing the issues involved with the questions we had for our post. Good point about the ways gender roles have changed when involving the work life. You were able to tie in the video effectively and thus made for an interesting read.
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