Remote work can't solve the childcare crisis. Treating it as the solution risks forcing parents (especially moms) to be full-time caregivers while also working for pay full-time. And it risks gaslighting parents (especially moms) if they can't manage that impossible task.
My cousin's wife works from home, and their kids still go to daycare because she's working.
Agreed-but... Is the need to work FT assumed? If not, great! If so, then kids gotta be cared for one way or another; having the option to WfH is good to have. But, certainly, better/subsidized childcare should be done too!
I'm a full-time student with young kids at home. Even with picking online classes that aren't on a set schedule as much as possible, it's incredibly difficult to manage. I cannot imagine trying to work a job while caring for my kids.
Also a lot of employers require remote workers to have childcare!
We try this sometimes when the kid gets sick and can’t go to preschool, and it is a nightmare at this age; you might get 3-4 hours of relatively focused work at best (if you let the screens babysit), calls get interrupted at the worst times, etc
A right to work from home is not bad, it's just not a solution for this. They desperately need to overhaul the whole medical system for one thing, and stop overworking people for other issues. Both of these arn't simple problems but they are desperately needed... everywhere.
Stuff that would actually help: 1) affordable childcare 2) affordable housing 3) an economy that isn’t fuckin BLEAK and depressing 4) jobs that pay a living wage 5) world leaders that aren’t embracing fascism 6) better social safety nets/community supports 7) the fall of capitalism
Also Brookings wants us to “join the conversation on birth rates on exTwitter” and that is going to be a no from me.
The solution to the "problem" of declining birth rates is immigration but folks aren't ready for that I guess
"Indeed, some preliminary research in the U.S. shows that remote work is associated with higher fertility for some demographic groups, such as wealthier or higher-educated women." 🤔