6 ways you can support team members parenting in the pandemic

Parents who have kids in school and jobs outside of the home are struggling to do the right thing for everyone. Women are disproportionately affected as pay inequity means they’re often the first parent called in to provide care. Keeping kids home while waiting to book a covid test, get the test and get the results - or having a school or daycare closure - can mean significant disruptions to the work day.

Whether you’re a leader or a co-worker, here are 6 ways you can help support working parents who are juggling the chaos:

1) Be patient with them - this is hard and they’re already feeling guilty and stressed.

2) Be flexible with working from home - if they don’t already have the option to work from home and it’s doable, provide it. (Finding backup childcare is hard when you don’t want to possibly give Grandma covid!)

3) Focus on work output instead of work hours - they may struggle to do a regular daytime schedule, but might be able to catch up after the kids go to bed. Be flexible on the “when” and be gracious with the “what”.

4) If a meeting can be an email, make it an email - meetings can be tough to attend with kids at home - emails are much more flexible and can be reviewed anytime.

5) Send a gift card for a meal - if they’re self-isolating they may be running low on groceries or really low on the will to make a meal while juggling childcare and work. If you can afford to make their day with a small gift that shows your support, consider it.

6) Continue being patient - as child vaccinations become a reality, parents are entering a new level of polarizing choices in the Jumanji-like chaos. Keep supporting them and showing empathy.