This post is mixing up two different issues, related as they may be. The fact that it's women who perform the caregiving may be a primary reason such labor is uncompensated. But that's not why it's unfair to caregivers to leave them with such few options. I'm now approaching 80, but a severe case of post-polio syndrome means that my wife needs me to do all the household work and see that she's well fed, happy and comfortable. I've been doing this for over ten years, and it sure would be nice to have more financial support and some respite options. The fact that I'm a man and my wife is a woman is irrelevant to the need.
Our country has been benefiting from the free labor of women forever. To make matters worse, that work was often unappreciated and taken for granted. Now, even Japanese women are saying, wait a minute, this is wrong.
Many aging adults, both females and males, during some period in their 40s through 60s caring for one or more aging parents, often followed by one spouse having to care for the other, sometimes for the same diseases that affected their parents. At its best, continuing care facilities can play an important and compassionate role, from independent living to assisted living and through end-of-life issues. But that is for the few who can afford such care for their parents or themselves. It is a sad, inhumane society that in reality is mostly dispassionate and uncaring toward its aging adults.
I’m absolutely in support of paid leave for various unspecified reasons that include no disclosure requirements. People shouldn’t have to divulge sensitive personal information to their employers, even if it means that some will abuse the benefit. This helps with a variety of reasonably short-term or intermittent situations, including newborn care and bonding for both parents. I’m concerned though that this issue is using the tremendously overwhelming issue of chronic longterm caregiving as justification. Are you expecting employers to foot the bill for longterm caregiving by paying their employees to care for family members in need of longterm caregiving? Please be careful that you don’t conflate these issues, leaving congress with a way to approve the former and say that they’ve addressed both. That’ll backfire. If nothing else, employers will push back and you’ll lose your gains. (I’m speculating, but it seems clear to me, given how congress has whittled away at the ACA and any other measure that certain members and powerful corporations don’t like.)
I am so glad you have brought this crisis into the spotlight. I have been there and now I will likely be called to action again. And what is bad is when the caregivers themselves need to be taken care of as well especially if they’ve been caring for sick parents or chronically sick children.
This post is mixing up two different issues, related as they may be. The fact that it's women who perform the caregiving may be a primary reason such labor is uncompensated. But that's not why it's unfair to caregivers to leave them with such few options. I'm now approaching 80, but a severe case of post-polio syndrome means that my wife needs me to do all the household work and see that she's well fed, happy and comfortable. I've been doing this for over ten years, and it sure would be nice to have more financial support and some respite options. The fact that I'm a man and my wife is a woman is irrelevant to the need.
Our country has been benefiting from the free labor of women forever. To make matters worse, that work was often unappreciated and taken for granted. Now, even Japanese women are saying, wait a minute, this is wrong.
Many aging adults, both females and males, during some period in their 40s through 60s caring for one or more aging parents, often followed by one spouse having to care for the other, sometimes for the same diseases that affected their parents. At its best, continuing care facilities can play an important and compassionate role, from independent living to assisted living and through end-of-life issues. But that is for the few who can afford such care for their parents or themselves. It is a sad, inhumane society that in reality is mostly dispassionate and uncaring toward its aging adults.
I’m absolutely in support of paid leave for various unspecified reasons that include no disclosure requirements. People shouldn’t have to divulge sensitive personal information to their employers, even if it means that some will abuse the benefit. This helps with a variety of reasonably short-term or intermittent situations, including newborn care and bonding for both parents. I’m concerned though that this issue is using the tremendously overwhelming issue of chronic longterm caregiving as justification. Are you expecting employers to foot the bill for longterm caregiving by paying their employees to care for family members in need of longterm caregiving? Please be careful that you don’t conflate these issues, leaving congress with a way to approve the former and say that they’ve addressed both. That’ll backfire. If nothing else, employers will push back and you’ll lose your gains. (I’m speculating, but it seems clear to me, given how congress has whittled away at the ACA and any other measure that certain members and powerful corporations don’t like.)
I am so glad you have brought this crisis into the spotlight. I have been there and now I will likely be called to action again. And what is bad is when the caregivers themselves need to be taken care of as well especially if they’ve been caring for sick parents or chronically sick children.