How Employers Can Help
Employers must work to relieve this stress. We know companies are under tremendous financial pressure during this economic downturn, but helping their teams avoid burnout and illness needs to be a priority. That is how they’ll get the best out of their employees amid all this disruption and retain those workers when the crisis is over. Read on
A Broken System
For many parents, this “new normal” means working a full-time job, homeschooling and not having access to day care, preschool or family help. Essential workers, like nurses and grocery store clerks, don’t have the option to stay home, and many have been left scrambling to find child care solutions.
People who care for adult loved ones may be caught between the demands of their new work-from-home schedules and full-time caregiving. Because COVID-19 is especially dangerous for the elderly and those with underlying conditions, caregivers may also find themselves in the difficult position of trying to social distance from their loved ones while also lacking any safe, convenient alternative care options....Read the full article
Challenges your workplace must consider
If we have learned anything from COVID-19 it is the fact that our system was struggling before to help working parents and caregivers. Fast forward and we see the taxing loads this has truly put on many.
Some highlights for organizations to continue working on:
out of school days solutions
lack of paid leave
remote work as a solution
employer sponsored child care/back up child care
inequality in our society
Having a thriving business and economy is impossible without thriving families
For most American families, work-life balance was a struggle long before the days of social distancing and indefinite school closures. The difficulty many face in finding child care and elder care in this country has a measurable impact on people’s wages, mental health and productivity. Now, restrictions and closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic are compounding many of the problems modern families already faced, and the pressure on parents and caregivers is more intense than ever before.
The Invisible Load
While this crisis has been challenging for all workers to adjust to, working parents — particularly working mothers — have been hit hard. For so long, the second shift of domestic responsibilities has fallen on the shoulders of working mothers. Read on
High Stress on Parents
Nearly half of parents of children under age 18 say their stress levels related to the coronavirus pandemic are high, with managing their kids' online learning a significant source of stress for many, according to a new survey by the American Psychological Association.