Employers can help make working and parenting through the pandemic a bit less awful

McKinsey&Company

Working parents have it rough ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ 
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On Point | TODAY'S NEWS. TOMORROW'S INSIGHTS
On Point | TODAY'S NEWS. TOMORROW'S INSIGHTS
The parents, trapped
The news
Groundhog Day. Amid the Omicron resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic, thousands of schools have shifted back to remote learning. Once again, parents are struggling to cope with last-minute school cancellations, juggling work and childcare, and managing periods of quarantine. The difference this time around? They already know how hard it can get. [WSJ]
Baby bust. What has the pandemic cost the American population? There were 60,000 fewer babies born between October 2020 and February 2021. Couples daunted by starting a family, or adding to one, in isolation are reassessing their plans. The newborn deficit is larger in states where unemployment spiked and in those with more COVID-19 cases per capita and follows a historical pattern of low birth rates following major crises. [WaPo]
Employed parents face higher numbers of and longer exposure to stressors from the multiple roles they play, and they have less ability to access periods of recovery as a result.
Our insights
Burnout and missed work. Compared with nonparents, employed parents are twice as likely to strongly agree that they are worn out at the end of the day, used to find their work more interesting, and sometimes think their work is insignificant. Parents are also more likely than nonparents to report missing days of work because they are experiencing symptoms of burnout.
Helping workers cope. Parents experiencing burnout are 90% more likely to report that they believe senior management considers productivity to be more important than mental health. Read our article to learn the six main causes of burnout, in addition to ways employers can help workers cope with pandemic parenting.
— Edited by Katy McLaughlin   
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by "McKinsey On Point" <publishing@email.mckinsey.com> - 10:14 - 1 Feb 2022