2 ms·

I'm amazed that, in all of the debates stemming from the Google Memo, I haven't seen anyone point their finger at the unhealthy tech culture as a female repella

I'm amazed that, in all of the debates stemming from the Google Memo, I haven't seen anyone point their finger at the unhealthy tech culture as a female repellant. Look at the work/life balance of your typical engineer in the tech industry. Compare this to the reality of a mother of small children. In our culture, women disproportionately bear the brunt of child rearing. When there's a work emergency and the kids HAVE to be picked up at daycare, who goes? When a kid is sick, who stays home? When a child is born, who takes several months of leave to care for them? Consider that many women leave the tech industry or stay away from the all-consuming work culture because they have or will eventually want a family life. It doesn't matter what are people's abilities when they see a job as incompatible and contrary to their life goals.

seanmcdirmid 9y ago
I'm leaving the industry for a while to take care of my 7 month old so my wife can get back into her career as a designer in the tech industry. We didn't really plan it like this, something happened, but in the end I think it's a good opportunity for our family (I get to bond with the kid, she gets to go back to developing her career). How society judges a stay-at-home dad might be another issue, however.
- shaftoe 9y ago
  "We didn't really plan it like this, something happened, but in the end I think it's a good opportunity for our family." Welcome to the experience of parenthood. Best of luck to you, your wife, and your child(ren).
  - seanmcdirmid 9y ago
    The kid came way before this plan did :)
e9 9y ago
But that was part of point in the memo, he was proposing how to change tech culture to make it more appealing for women. Like one of his proposals was to introduce part-time jobs into Google among other things. He wasn't claiming to have all answers but wanted to start official conversation on this topic and figure out what is truly feasible at Google...
- e9 9y ago
  great rant by Jordan Peterson on this topic that touches on work and work cultures that don't appeal to women: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eieVE-xFXuo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eieVE-xFXuo
chippy 9y ago
I suspect the Protestant Work Ethic is so strong in the USA in all work places that to argue that working less can be good for a better life balance is almost tantamount to blashphemy. Europe is better (Catholicism perhaps?) in their work life balance, where working hard as you can is not seen as a social and personal good. I also feel its a function of age. Young recent graduates can work for longer, have more energy, have less of a life than people 10 years older with more life, children etc.

seanmcdirmid 9y ago

I'm leaving the industry for a while to take care of my 7 month old so my wife can get back into her career as a designer in the tech industry. We didn't really plan it like this, something happened, but in the end I think it's a good opportunity for our family (I get to bond with the kid, she gets to go back to developing her career). How society judges a stay-at-home dad might be another issue, however.

shaftoe 9y ago
"We didn't really plan it like this, something happened, but in the end I think it's a good opportunity for our family." Welcome to the experience of parenthood. Best of luck to you, your wife, and your child(ren).
- seanmcdirmid 9y ago
  The kid came way before this plan did :)

e9 9y ago

But that was part of point in the memo, he was proposing how to change tech culture to make it more appealing for women. Like one of his proposals was to introduce part-time jobs into Google among other things. He wasn't claiming to have all answers but wanted to start official conversation on this topic and figure out what is truly feasible at Google...

e9 9y ago
great rant by Jordan Peterson on this topic that touches on work and work cultures that don't appeal to women: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eieVE-xFXuo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eieVE-xFXuo

chippy 9y ago

I suspect the Protestant Work Ethic is so strong in the USA in all work places that to argue that working less can be good for a better life balance is almost tantamount to blashphemy. Europe is better (Catholicism perhaps?) in their work life balance, where working hard as you can is not seen as a social and personal good. I also feel its a function of age. Young recent graduates can work for longer, have more energy, have less of a life than people 10 years older with more life, children etc.