These are head spinning days. With each day come new complexities and challenges. We are up to the task. Still, the It’s Working Project cannot help but wonder, what toll is getting through another day taking on men, women, children, employers, businesses and our ability to feel connected to our best selves?
So we continue to ask you to share your stories with us. And now (drumroll) – we have expanded our queries to include the myriad of impacts of Covid-19. Please join us, share your story and help make the Portrait Project much more personal.
Why?
Care.com’s recent survey summary reminds us of the realities of our world, and it is not pretty.
Almost 70% of mothers are in the labor force, and about 42% of mothers are the sole or primary breadwinners in their homes3. In 2018, the labor force participation rate for all women with children under age 18 was 71.5% (for men, it was 93.3%4). That’s to say nothing of the 17.7 million individuals in the United States who are caregivers for an older adult with a health or functional limitation.
And now we know how quickly and dramatically the composition of our American workforce is changing as a result of the Pandemic. According to Women in the Workplace, Mercer & LeanIn’s most recent and rattling report, Covid-19 is impacting the lives of employees, causing struggles without an obvious elixir.
The Covid-19 crisis has been extremely difficult for employees. Several challenges loom large, including childcare and homeschooling responsibilities, mental health, and burnout. Many employees feel like they need to be “always on”—available for work at all hours of the day. And a significant number of employees are worried about layoffs, furloughs, and financial insecurity.
Taken together, these challenges paint a picture of a workforce that is dealing with unsustainable pressure and anxiety. Almost half of employees say they have consistently felt stressed at work over the past few months, and about a third report feeling exhausted or burned out. For working parents—and working mothers in particular—those burdens are even heavier.
Join Us, Please!
And here we are, The It’s Working Project — playing our part, doing our very best to ask and listen to the new realities of the American work and campus place. Our goal, as always, is to bring life to the data. To gather and share stories in compelling, personal ways — to move from data to experience – bringing life to the harsh realities and family-centric experiences to life.