With so many school districts planning to open the new school year in September having students learn remotely from home, the question arises, what do parents do if they have jobs that won’t allow them to stay at home? What if they cannot afford to hire a babysitter to watch their children during the day, or if they cannot have grandma or grandpa, or a trusted neighbor, care for their children until they come home from their jobs?
Ah, then the parent(s) have a problem. So what’s the answer? What do the children’s parent(s) do?
Obviously, they cannot leave their young children home alone to do their remote schooling unsupervised. Then again, they have to work in order to earn a living so they can provide for their family. Rent, food, clothing, utility bills, etc.
Well, at least one municipality in Hudson County has officially announced they will, and are going to allow, their municipal employees who have children, to work from home wherever possible.
Earlier today, Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop tweeted, “Due to #COVID19 + childcare issue w/schools being closed we’re setting up a policy for employees to 100% work from home where possible. We have software now + rules to make sure employees are accountable but I’d be lying if I didn’t have concerns.”
So what are those concerns Fulop is referring to? The Mayor tweeted, “We deal w/taxpayer $ and there’s a thin line between a “no show job” + “work from home”. We will monitor closely + have tools in place for accountability but we have little choice w/ the realities of child care, schools + Covid. We’re trying to be reasonable.’
It will be interesting to see what other municipalities in Hudson County, if any, adopt a policy allowing workers with children to work 100% from home.
