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The easiest solution to 'child care' -- allow children to come to the office. Most people have cushy office jobs. Kids 0 - 5 do not take up much space. Parents
by tathougies 7y ago
The easiest solution to 'child care' -- allow children to come to the office. Most people have cushy office jobs. Kids 0 - 5 do not take up much space.
Parents can take staggered lunch breaks to watch the children. Children would be in a common area that'd be appropriately gated off. In dual-income families, either mom or dad can take the child to their office.
Benefits:
(1) Both parents can work and be with their child
(2) Children see adults working, not just playing. This is good as children want to be like adults
(3) Non-parents get to spend time with babies and children, which is wonderful!
(4) For nursing working mothers, having the baby there would make nursing much easier than pumping. Babies could even be given little bassinets to sleep and wiggle around in near mom and dad, if they want that.
(5) The child/children can share in mom and dad's lunch.
(6) Cute babies in offices!!! How great is that!?
Speaking from personal experience, when my colleagues have been forced due to circumstance to bring their young children in to the office, the experience has always been positive. However, my colleagues seem worried that one of us may be offended and apologize incessantly. We should stop this and just make it a policy that children are allowed in-office. I mean, a lot of companies I've worked at have allowed dogs, which can't be potty trained, don't wear diapers, and sometimes bite people. Why are children treated worse than dogs?
EDIT: responses to this thread are the #1 reason why we will never have affordable childcare. Americans, as a group, highly highly dislike children, even if they won't admit it out of fear of sounding like a misanthrope.
- jedberg 7y agoThis is essentially what the big tech companies do with their onsite daycare. They have adults who get hired just to watch the kids, and you can pop in and out as your schedule permits. It's hard to get work done when there are kids in the work area, so I can see why most companies don't encourage this. Especially since some people don't like kids. Another even better solution is a remote workforce. Then only you have to deal with the distractions of your kid, except during meetings. As long as you can find something to do with the kid, or people are ok with kids on the conference call, it works out. My employees are used to seeing my kid pop into the frame during video calls, and it's not really a problem.
- tathougies 7y ago> Especially since some people don't like kids. Well those people can be shunted off into some sad depressing part of the building? Or work from home. Remote work is great, but it's also very nice and social to bring babies in to the office to meet your friends. What's so wrong with that?
- Konnstann 7y agoThe majority of my office is BL2 Lab space, people who bring their kids in are being incredibly irresponsible. The other aspect is a lot of people who would benefit from workplace daycare don't work in white-collar office spaces. Finally segregating people who don't enjoy distractions at work seems very rude, I like kids but I am overly cautious around them, if someone brought their kid into work I'd be more focused on the kid not killing him/herself than my job.
- tathougies 7y agoMost people do not work in BL2 lab space. Most office people have desk jobs, where they sit at a desk and type all day.
- WhompingWindows 7y agoEh, I don't want babies in my building. They are distracting and we would definitely get a lot less done. I'm fine with there being a daycare center within the office park, however I'm not fine with it being a communal thing where all the parents take work-time to watch the kids.
- FisDugthop 7y agoI work in a dozen-story building, colocated with a half-dozen other tech companies. There is a daycare on the first floor. There's also a couple loud restaurant. However, due to quality construction practices, adjacent floors are not audible.