One of the typical realities of single parenthood is that single parents have to work. Now, I know that not all single parents also have to work to provide an income and support for their families, but this is true for most of us. As working single parents, many of us face particular issues on the job related to how we are able to work and juggle our family obligations. I think the most important element to being able to successfully juggle work and family as a single parent is to find a work environment that is understanding and supportive of our single parent status.
A few years ago I had a job where only one person in the senior management team (the line of authority above me) had children and no one was a single parent. I have to admit that despite all the policy manuals and lip service to being family-friendly, that was the least single parent family-friendly place I’ve ever worked. It wasn’t that anyone was intentionally anti-family or anti-single parent, but they just didn’t “get it”—they couldn’t understand why I couldn’t stay late at a moment’s notice, or why I might get calls at work from one of my children’s schools. The lack of understanding and support for my life as a single parent was one of the main reasons I went looking elsewhere, and found a job where I worked with two other single parents!
I definitely don’t think that being a single parent makes us less reliable workers, or guarantees that we will be bringing a trail of crisis with us to work. In fact, I have found that single parents tend to be awesome organizers and incredibly efficient people to work with—we know how to get things done in limited time (because we have so much to do), but I do think that we need to have some flexibility to meet all our obligations. This can mean being able to take calls from our kids, take an extra long lunch hour in order to make a teacher conference, or have some understanding if we need to shuffle our schedules around to accommodate a sick child. I think it pays for a single parent to examine a potential workplace for single-parent friendliness and family friendliness during the interview process—it isn’t just about written policies and benefits—be on the lookout for other parents and for an environment that allows some understanding flexibility of the life of a parent.
Also: Single Parents and Work
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