I have finally finished Part Two!
You can read Part One here. I apologize, this is hardly a masterpiece, but it
provides some concrete examples of things we can begin to advocate for that
keeps the success of businesses (small, giant and everything in between) in
mind. BE SURE TO COMMENT if you have questions or ideas or criticisms. I want
to advocate for honest and real solutions!
No Childcare Access
If you are going to advocate for
a strengthened family unit-based society (which I do) childcare access in
single parent and two parent homes is an important factor. Currently, most businesses run according to
the needs of the business. How else would they make money? We have set business
hours and office commutes. This all works out great when families are not
involved. Once the employee is a parent, however, things can be complicated. It
is more and more difficult to support a family on one income, and we have discussed
what a family and a job mean for single parents already. So how can we work to
make businesses more family-friendly?
I will start with a few important
comments about my perspective. I am completely in support of a free market
economy. I believe in small businesses and citizens that work to build
profitable businesses thus being able to create jobs and help the local economy
thrive. I also have some buy-in where corporate social responsibility (CSR) is
concerned. (Businesses giving back to the local community, supporting
employees, etc.) All this being said, the thoughts I have where childcare
access in concerned is not something I want to see mandated, or enforced to the
point that local businesses buckle under financial costs. There is some research
that supports CSR and the idea that happy employees are more productive. Take Patagonia as an example. In an effort to create happy employees, the company
promotes a flexible work schedule, has on-site daycare, works to ensure their
products are environmentally responsible, and gives back to the community on
the individual and corporate level. As a
result, their employees work hard. They sift through more applications for an
open position than other companies, even when times are good. Turnover is low. Keeping this example in mind, here are my
thoughts on increasing childcare access:
-
Onsite daycare/drop-in center: If we start to view employees as people, and people with
families, this kind of an employee benefit can really help with lost hours and
employee turnover. It also can create employee buy in, giving employees a
reason to work hard for a particular company. Whether it be heavy manufacturing
and hourly workers, or office work, access to childcare can benefit the employees
and the employer. There are some financial and logistical aspects that can make
this challenging, but I can envision this working a few different ways:
o Onsite care where the providers are employed by the company,
or
o Onsite care or facilities provided by a separate entity
where a partnership/contract is entered.
The thought here
would be that the upfront cost of a childcare contract would be smaller than
the cost of lost hours and employee turnover. This sort of arrangement would
help defray the costs for employees, thus freeing up wages to, you know, live.
-
Flexible schedules: While
I realize business hours are business hours, rigid hours are not conducive to
family life. A little flexibility goes a long way in allowing a parent time to
take their child to the doctor, or pick them up when they are sick, etc. Flexible
does not mean that there is no consistency, however.
-
Telecommuting/working from home: While this is something primarily for management or office
jobs, allowing the flexibility for employees to work from home a few hours a
week is also an option.
Family Unfriendly Policies
I know the above graphic focuses
on extended, paid maternity leave, but there are a few other things to
consider. Extended, paid leave might be available in other countries, but think
about the burden on companies/employers that creates. They are set up to pay
the wages of an employee that will not be there AND for someone else to do the
work while they are gone. It can lead to discriminatory hiring practices, even
if you create all the laws to keep it from happening. Why not go at it from a
different angle? Infant at work policies will help get moms back to work sooner.
This typically means that infants are welcome with new parents at work until
the age of six months or so (AKA when they become mobile). In manufacturing and service positions, this
can be difficult, but if you have onsite childcare, problem solved!
There is also the tendency for
policies to allow mothers some time with their new children, but paternity
benefits are sorely lacking in America. I really feel that the truest of
feminist ideals supports not maternity/paternity benefits but parent benefits.
To conclude, the things that the
graphic draws our attention to are of the greatest relevance to me as not just
a feminist, but a Catholic feminist. These issues strike at the very heart of
the dignity of the worker Catholic Social Teaching strives to uphold. By
reconstructing what our idea of employee benefits looks like, we can begin to chip
away at pay discrepancies and the “un-liveable wage.”
