NATIONS THRIVE BY HELPING FAMILIES
Economists are leery about work-life balance. It is too abstract, too incompatible with market principles.
Governments treat family-friendly policies as a frill, a grudging concession to working women.
The media play up images of female executives rushing to daycare centres in their power suits; female lawyers struggling to meet their quota of billable hours after their kids are in bed; female celebrities wrestling with maternal guilt.
The issue is much bigger than this, says the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. Yesterday, the Paris based international organization released the most comprehensive study ever done of the tug-of-war between work and family life.
Its conclusion: Countries that want to raise their standard of living, improve their fertility rate, reduce child poverty and narrow the pay gap between men and women have to get serious about offering parents healthier choices.
It is not just a matter of easing workplace stress, says Babies and Bosses. It is a question of how - sometimes whether - individuals contribute to a nation's economy.
"As long as there are people who are constrained in their choices about work/family balance, the result may be both too few babies and too little employment or unsatisfactory careers,"says the 215-page report (available at www.oecd.org).
It is a synthesis of five years' work, reviewing the policies of Canada, Britain, Sweden, Finland, Australia, New Zealand, Portugal, Switzerland, Japan, Ireland, Austria, Denmark and the Netherlands. Statistics for other OECD countries such as the U.S., Mexico, Germany, France and Spain are also included in the study.
Here are its principal findings:
* Access to affordable preschool care is vital.
Without it, some women postpone or forgo having children. Others sacrifice their career to raise their children. Many make compromises - shortchanging their children or their employers - that eat away at them and impose an unfair burden on their co-workers.
For single mothers, the options are especially stark. Trapped between governments that require them to work and daycare centres that charge more than they can afford, they make tenuous babysitting arrangements or find ways to stay on welfare.
Canada fares badly in this regard. Child care costs 21.3 per cent of the average industrial wage, compared with 4.5 per cent in Sweden, 9.1 per cent in Germany, 19.5 per cent in the U.S. and 33.8 per cent in Switzerland. (The OECD average was 16.3 per cent.)
* Parental leave programs make a big difference.
They give mothers (and fathers in some countries) time to bond with their newborns while allowing them to stay in the workforce.
They encourage young couples to start families, rather than holding off until they can afford to interrupt their careers.
And they provide children with full-time personal care in the crucial early months of their lives.
Canada's policies place it in the middle of the pack. It lags behind most European countries, but is ahead of the U.S. and Japan.
* After-school care is badly needed.
By keeping schools open after classes, governments could go a long way toward aligning parent's' and kids' schedules, alleviate pressure on workers to leave early and reduce the number of latchkey children.
Denmark and Sweden are the only countries with well-established programs. Britain and the Netherlands are moving in this direction.
* Employers are unlikely to act on their own.
Companies that offer flexible hours, work sharing and other family-friendly arrangements report reduced absenteeism, lower staff turnover and enhanced productivity. But the business case is not strong enough to convince most corporate executives.
This means governments have to take the lead, using tax measures, public programs and moral suasion.
Life was simpler, the OECD acknowledges, when families consisted of a breadwinner, a homemaker and a brood of children. But that hasn't been the case for half a century.
Canada can catch up to reality or its politicians can pursue "bigger" priorities: Handing out tax cuts, playing partisan games and dissecting the alleged ethical lapses of a prime minister who left office 14 years ago.
Carol Goar's column appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Economy, Goverment and Family-Friendly Policies
From the Comment section of the Toronto Star, Friday, November 30, 2007, page AA6, an article about the need for economic and government policies that are friendly to families:
Thursday, January 10, 2008
The Real Meaning of Holiday Cheer
From the Greater Toronto section of the Wednesday, December 26, 2007, Toronto Star, page A12, an article about a man who spent his holidays bringing food and cheer to the homeless:
'IT SHOULD BE LIKE THIS EVERY DAY'
Man spends his holiday delivering cheer, gifts to the city's homeless in downtown core
Emily Mathieu
Staff Reporter
Parth Bhavsar has developed his own spin on what it means to give gifts at Christmas.
"You just load up the car and get out there," said Bhavsar, 27. Yesterday was his fifth year handing out food and gifts to people living on the streets on Christmas Day.
The packages are a big hit, but it's not just about the items inside, he said.
"Most of the time they just want to chat," he said.
The trunk of the grey Nissan he was driving was filled with bags of warm gloves, hats, homemade turkey sandwiches, fruit and juice. He also handed out items such as packs of facial tissue and small bunches of cigarettes in plastic bags.
"Hey, how are you doing?" he asked one man as he crouched low to give him a package. "Going anywhere for dinner tonight?"
Along for the ride was girlfriend Kyla Falconer, 26, delivering for the second year. She chose to spend Christmas handing out items to people in need "just to help." Christmas has become all about giving - but not to the people who need it the most, she said.
Throughout the morning, the car wove through the downtown care, pulling sharply to the side of the street each time the couple spotted someone who looked like they would benefit from a gift. Falconer and Bhavsar bought all of the items themselves.
The streets were almost entirely free of people, aside from those who were wrapped in sleeping bags in doorways or lying across air vents for warmth.
At many locations, Bhavsar and Falconer were not the first people to lend a helping hand.
"It should be like this every day," Falconer said, gesturing toward a man dozing on a patch of concrete near Queen St. and University Ave. Next to his sleeping bag rested a small pile of Christmas gifts left by other well-wishers.
At one stop the pair handed gift parcels to two men curled into sleeping bags on a patch of pavement close to the corner of King St. W. and Duncan St.
"They are nice," said one man, who identified himself as Frosty, "like the snowman," as he gestured to the duo. Lying with his back to him was Dino, who was "just relaxing" and drinking a juice he'd pulled out of the gift bag.
By the time the men started sorting through their gift bags, Falconer and Bhavsar were back in the car, off to their next stop.
Bhavsar said there really isn't a reason why he decided to start spending Christmas this way.
The holidays could be a happier time if more people helped one another out, he said.
"Turn it into what you want it to be."
'IT SHOULD BE LIKE THIS EVERY DAY'
Man spends his holiday delivering cheer, gifts to the city's homeless in downtown core
Emily Mathieu
Staff Reporter
Parth Bhavsar has developed his own spin on what it means to give gifts at Christmas.
"You just load up the car and get out there," said Bhavsar, 27. Yesterday was his fifth year handing out food and gifts to people living on the streets on Christmas Day.
The packages are a big hit, but it's not just about the items inside, he said.
"Most of the time they just want to chat," he said.
The trunk of the grey Nissan he was driving was filled with bags of warm gloves, hats, homemade turkey sandwiches, fruit and juice. He also handed out items such as packs of facial tissue and small bunches of cigarettes in plastic bags.
"Hey, how are you doing?" he asked one man as he crouched low to give him a package. "Going anywhere for dinner tonight?"
Along for the ride was girlfriend Kyla Falconer, 26, delivering for the second year. She chose to spend Christmas handing out items to people in need "just to help." Christmas has become all about giving - but not to the people who need it the most, she said.
Throughout the morning, the car wove through the downtown care, pulling sharply to the side of the street each time the couple spotted someone who looked like they would benefit from a gift. Falconer and Bhavsar bought all of the items themselves.
The streets were almost entirely free of people, aside from those who were wrapped in sleeping bags in doorways or lying across air vents for warmth.
At many locations, Bhavsar and Falconer were not the first people to lend a helping hand.
"It should be like this every day," Falconer said, gesturing toward a man dozing on a patch of concrete near Queen St. and University Ave. Next to his sleeping bag rested a small pile of Christmas gifts left by other well-wishers.
At one stop the pair handed gift parcels to two men curled into sleeping bags on a patch of pavement close to the corner of King St. W. and Duncan St.
"They are nice," said one man, who identified himself as Frosty, "like the snowman," as he gestured to the duo. Lying with his back to him was Dino, who was "just relaxing" and drinking a juice he'd pulled out of the gift bag.
By the time the men started sorting through their gift bags, Falconer and Bhavsar were back in the car, off to their next stop.
Bhavsar said there really isn't a reason why he decided to start spending Christmas this way.
The holidays could be a happier time if more people helped one another out, he said.
"Turn it into what you want it to be."
Sunday, January 6, 2008
Fair-Trade T-Shirts
From the Ideas section of the Wednesday, October 31, 2007, Toronto Star, page AA8, is an article about the Dalai Lama's visit to Toronto and the issue of whether to sell cheap or fair-trade clothes in fundraising by a Tibetan association:
HAPPINESS IS FAIR TRADE T-SHIRTS
Hillary Vipond
The Dalai Lama speaks today at the Rogers Center. He is coming to deliver a talk on human happiness, but it is his presence and his example that is shifting the priorities of local business in Toronto.
He has been invited to speak by the Canadian Tibetan Association of Ontario, and it, like the rest of us, has its own projects and priorities.
One of these is raising money to build a Tibetan centre in Ontario. This year, as in years before, it is selling T-shirts at a profit in order to raise funds. It needs to make as much money as possible off the sale of the shirts and in years past simply has used the cheapest T-shirts available.
Unfortunately, cheap T-shirts invariably mean sweatshop labour, and so this year a member of the Tibetan community suggested that it use fair-trade T-shirts.
This was a difficult decision. Fair-trade shirts are more expensive than sweatshop shirts and cut directly into fundraising, but the price difference is reflected in the living standards of the labourers.
For example, Gildan Activewear Inc. is able to produce very inexpensive shirts. Its labour standards are not high. Gildan is certified as meeting fair labour standards by a group called the Fair Labour Association (FLA), which also certifies Nike, Adidas, and Asics.
The FLA guarantees to meet either the minimum wage in the country or the prevailing industry wage. It fails to mention that the prevailing industry wage is usually sweatshop labour wage, and that the minimum wage in many countries either does not exist or is set to base-level subsistence.
The FLA has also committed to no more than a 60-hour work week, but this does not apply when there are "extraordinary business circumstances." It does not require members to pay overtime unless they are legally obliged to do so. Workers are allowed one day off a week.
The shirts provided by the Fair Trade Clothing Co-op, on the other hand, are from a co-operative in El Salvador that is owned and run by single mothers. The women make on average $89 per week, more than double the standard sweatshop wage in El Salvador. They have the weekends off, and their workdays have decreased from 12 hours to eight. They do not have to leave their children alone at night.
In the end, the Tibetan Association of Ontario had to make a decision between potentially losing some of its income and supporting fair trade, or going with standard business practice. It chose to go with fair trade shirts. The Fair Trade Clothing Co-op in Toronto also lowered the price on the shirts as far as it possibly could without actually losing money. And the consumer will end up paying a little more at the end of the day.
Is all this work worth it? Is the sacrifice demanded from every group at every stage of this process worth the labour standards of people in other countries? Are human rights worth it?
I think so. I don't doubt that the Dalai Lama thinks so. The Canadian Tibetan Association of Ontario thinks so. And some consumers will think so.
It is unquestionable that fairer trade - with fewer sweatshops, fewer human rights abuse, less poverty, less child labour - will raise the cost of the products we buy. From sneakers to T-shirts this is true.
But extreme poverty is a human rights abuse, and allowing it to happen for the sake of cheap products is not something we should be willing to do.
Hillary Vipond is an intern with Canadian Crossroads International, an NGO working with southern partners to address the root causes of poverty and HIV/AIDS.
HAPPINESS IS FAIR TRADE T-SHIRTS
Hillary Vipond
The Dalai Lama speaks today at the Rogers Center. He is coming to deliver a talk on human happiness, but it is his presence and his example that is shifting the priorities of local business in Toronto.
He has been invited to speak by the Canadian Tibetan Association of Ontario, and it, like the rest of us, has its own projects and priorities.
One of these is raising money to build a Tibetan centre in Ontario. This year, as in years before, it is selling T-shirts at a profit in order to raise funds. It needs to make as much money as possible off the sale of the shirts and in years past simply has used the cheapest T-shirts available.
Unfortunately, cheap T-shirts invariably mean sweatshop labour, and so this year a member of the Tibetan community suggested that it use fair-trade T-shirts.
This was a difficult decision. Fair-trade shirts are more expensive than sweatshop shirts and cut directly into fundraising, but the price difference is reflected in the living standards of the labourers.
For example, Gildan Activewear Inc. is able to produce very inexpensive shirts. Its labour standards are not high. Gildan is certified as meeting fair labour standards by a group called the Fair Labour Association (FLA), which also certifies Nike, Adidas, and Asics.
The FLA guarantees to meet either the minimum wage in the country or the prevailing industry wage. It fails to mention that the prevailing industry wage is usually sweatshop labour wage, and that the minimum wage in many countries either does not exist or is set to base-level subsistence.
The FLA has also committed to no more than a 60-hour work week, but this does not apply when there are "extraordinary business circumstances." It does not require members to pay overtime unless they are legally obliged to do so. Workers are allowed one day off a week.
The shirts provided by the Fair Trade Clothing Co-op, on the other hand, are from a co-operative in El Salvador that is owned and run by single mothers. The women make on average $89 per week, more than double the standard sweatshop wage in El Salvador. They have the weekends off, and their workdays have decreased from 12 hours to eight. They do not have to leave their children alone at night.
In the end, the Tibetan Association of Ontario had to make a decision between potentially losing some of its income and supporting fair trade, or going with standard business practice. It chose to go with fair trade shirts. The Fair Trade Clothing Co-op in Toronto also lowered the price on the shirts as far as it possibly could without actually losing money. And the consumer will end up paying a little more at the end of the day.
Is all this work worth it? Is the sacrifice demanded from every group at every stage of this process worth the labour standards of people in other countries? Are human rights worth it?
I think so. I don't doubt that the Dalai Lama thinks so. The Canadian Tibetan Association of Ontario thinks so. And some consumers will think so.
It is unquestionable that fairer trade - with fewer sweatshops, fewer human rights abuse, less poverty, less child labour - will raise the cost of the products we buy. From sneakers to T-shirts this is true.
But extreme poverty is a human rights abuse, and allowing it to happen for the sake of cheap products is not something we should be willing to do.
Hillary Vipond is an intern with Canadian Crossroads International, an NGO working with southern partners to address the root causes of poverty and HIV/AIDS.
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