Today is Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day, “designed to expand opportunities for girls and boys, expose them to what adults in their lives do during the work day, show them the value of their education, and give them an opportunity to share how they envision their future.”
I find it telling, however, that the organizers also discuss the importance of educating our children about work-life balance:
As adults we often face the challenge of balancing work, family, community, and personal responsibilities. We often have to make decisions about working late, leaving work early to pick up a sick child from school or attend a school play, or providing the best care for a sick parent or relative. Sometimes these decisions are easy, and sometimes they may be difficult or complicated. . . . Through activities designed specifically for the program we can begin a constructive, solution-oriented conversation with our children about the challenges of daily life.
. . . there is a new generation at work, one in which both girls and boys expect to fully participate in their workplaces and families. According to a study conducted by the Families and Work Institute, 81 percent of girls and almost 60 percent of boys said they would reduce their work hours when they have children.
The balance between work and family is at the heart of the so-called mommy wars. It is smart of the event’s coordinators to try and convey to our children that there is no war, merely a spectrum of choices that can shift and change even in one person’s life, and even in the course of a day. I wonder, however, how many employers are going to create local programs that really discuss such matters. It’s much simpler to get a few employee volunteers to give some “this is what we do here” talks and leave it at that.
In the spirit of giving the other side of the spectrum a fair shot, therefore, I feel compelled to repeat what I said last year for this event, which is that stay-at-home and self-employed parents shouldn’t pass up the opportunity to share their daily lives and choices:
I believe, however, that there’s still room for a day to share our work experiences, whatever they are, with our children, even if it means taking then into our home studies instead of an office building. Many of us do a little of this as a matter of course, but why not make an extra effort on this day to explain current projects or take a child to a client meeting?
For those of us not doing any income-earning work, why not share some household-management tasks, e.g., making a shopping list and planning an effective route, organizing and paying bills, etc.? This is work, too, and part of the overall household operation. Our children see it happen all the time, but if they actively participate once in a while they may have a better appreciation for what’s involved. I’d venture to say that LGBT households are in the forefront when it comes to recognizing the importance of both parents’ contributions. It only seems fitting that we incorporate both into a day about showing children our work.
Are you participating in Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day? If so, how? Please share in the comments.
Family Pride is encouraging LGBTQ parents to take part in the day – it’s a great way of increasing visibility and including our families in the national conversation.
I brought my oldest daughter (8 yrs old) in to work yesterday. I had to laugh though at one of their company wide presentations for the kids on diversity in the workplace— I saw her stand up for her moms and point out that gay families are a part of the diverse makeup of this company- not just differences in skin color, religion, etc. It was listed on the power point presentation but the presenters opted to pussy foot around the topic. My daughter would have none of that!! The people from HR gave furtive glances around the room and I raised my eyebrow at them (they knew she’s my daughter) and waited to see what would happen. They mumbled some non-sequitur about differences in families about who you go home to at night is your family. Blah blah blah fishcakes.
They also have a coloring contest for the kids to make a picture of their family to show the diversity of our corporation. This is one place where my kidlet might have a strong advantage over whitebread families– what with the racial differences, physical and learning challenges, and all in our lesbian family!!