Comments on: Is Workplace Flexibility Only About Mommies?

By: E_Wendt

E_Wendt — Wed, 06 May 2009 05:53:54 +0000

Agree with others that “Definitely not a Mommy issue!” I liked the response you had on Twitter about the fact that we are still having this conversation says a lot. So true! and check out the title of this article by J. Pleck written in 1993 – Are “family supportive” employer policies relevant to men?

16 years later and still a question on our minds…

Pleck, J. H. (1993). Are “family supportive” employer policies relevant to men? In J. C. Hood (Ed.), Men, work, and family (pp. 217-237). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

By: Leanne

Leanne — Wed, 06 May 2009 03:01:15 +0000

Tonight’s responses on Twitter:

@chrysula: @leanneclc That we’re stilll having this conversation shows how far we have to go. ALL. We go nowhere if this is just a Mommy issue

By: Stephanie Radner

Stephanie Radner — Mon, 04 May 2009 20:06:44 +0000

Sure it is, for families with two mommies! Workplace flexibility is about balancing professional and personal lives, and personal life often includes family and/or kids (but not always – thanks to Mighty Casey for the reminder). In the same way that the modern family is no longer one mother, one father, and 2.5 kids, the issue of flexibility is no longer just a mommy issue, even if that is how it was originally defined.

By: Twitted by leanneclc

Twitted by leanneclc — Sat, 02 May 2009 13:05:01 +0000

[...] This post was Twitted by leanneclc – Real-url.org [...]

By: Catherine Paull

Catherine Paull — Sat, 02 May 2009 01:43:43 +0000

Work Flex is for anyone these days. I currently “share” a job that would require more than most employees are willing to give – and the woman that I share the job with is as content with the balance that we need, since we both have small home-businesses of our own as well.

My daughter works at SmartPak (in Mass), and I understand that each employee there gets at least one weekday morning off to do errands, take care of doctor appts or whatever. This allows SmartPak to remain open until the end of business on the West Coast without requiring anyone to work late more than a day or two per week. That flexibility (along with some other worker-friendly policies) makes for a very happy workforce.

Traditional corporations may be slow to catch on, but these kinds of policies result in increased efficiency and less unexpected absenteeism.

By: edwardboches

edwardboches — Fri, 01 May 2009 19:00:49 +0000

Agree with post and Mighty Casey. Less to do with Moms and more to do with balancing work and life. Given that we all work 24/7 via technology and accessibility, it seems that a. work is where it happens and b. work is when it happens. Flex has more to do with helping us or allowing us to be more efficient in all aspects of our life. I often leave office in time to have dinner with my kids, but then work until 11. Real issue, for a manager or business owner, is making sure that people do not take advantage. Hard to imagine in this economy. But I know that in my company, while we might allow and embrace Flex time, because it can be good and motivating for, it’s also a privilege that should be earned by dependability.

Edward Boches

By: Judy Martin

Judy Martin — Fri, 01 May 2009 15:29:09 +0000

Work Life Flex is an everyone issue for three reasons: The need to navigate the enormous amount of sensory stimulation, the challenging job market, and the way our working and living experiences have merged in what I refer to as our WorkLife Nation.

Whether you have children, step children, are single parenting, or are just starting a family the lines have blurred to the extent that to be successful in business or career – one has to juggle. It’s just the way of the world. I think implicit in that is the questioning that comes up about balance.

For most of the mommies I know, some days it’s ok to keep the bult amount of attention on work – other days the seat of balance moves in another direction when a child is ill. But the same can be said of the eb and flow in the workplace. Some days a particular project requires more attention and other things go the wayside for a bit.

I think awareness of what needs to be the priority on any given day is crucial. But even more important is the ability to do that without guilt about the other items that have to take the back burner.

By: Brian Del Vecchio

Brian Del Vecchio — Fri, 01 May 2009 04:26:31 +0000

I’m a founding member of betahouse in Cambridge, MA, where we’re now celebrating 2 years of coworking with the local web startup community. Of our current resident population of 20, 5 of us are fathers of young children, with one more due to join the ranks of fatherhood imminently. We all work flexible hours because we are either self-employed or work remotely in a flexible situation. All of us take advantage of our flexibility to be active parents.

As my betahouse brother Giuseppe says, “working for yourself is the new stable job.”

By: Leanne

Leanne — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 20:21:15 +0000

From twitter earlier today:

executivemoms: @leanneclc Is work flex only about moms? Of course not. But in reality, the responsibilites + emotional tugs impact women more than men.

By: Mighty Casey

Mighty Casey — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 13:45:08 +0000

Flexible “commercial hours” – whether it’s the time your enterprise is open or the time you have to be on site to deliver whatever drives your personal commercial engine – did arise out of the Mommy contingent’s arrival in the marketplace.

However, I have been the loser in a number of battles over who gets stuck with the hours that Mommy can’t cover – the reason has always been baldly stated as, “well, you don’t have kids, so you can be here [insert inconvenient-to-mom time frame].” Dads pull this too, but not as frequently.

Everyone in the workplace, and business in general, should have the ability to manage their own time, with the only criteria being that they deliver the goods/services/whatever that are expected of them.

Bottom line: admit you’re an adult, and act accordingly.