(10-12-2021 06:28 PM)OptimisticOwl Wrote:  

(10-12-2021 04:47 PM)RiceLad15 Wrote:  

(10-12-2021 03:45 PM)OptimisticOwl Wrote:  

(10-12-2021 02:09 PM)RiceLad15 Wrote:  

(10-12-2021 11:56 AM)Hambone10 Wrote:  Well, I'm referring to 'in person school' as being 'childcare'... so bottom line, the SOLUTION for that issue is to simply get people back going to school, ALMOST no matter what. As the CDC has pointed out numerous times before during health scares, the value of in person education and parents working is VASTLY greater than the risk of getting sick if its not deadly or highly debilitating to kids, which it isn't (that we know of now). Since we were discussing masks in schools and teachers unions, it seems the unions need to police themselves and get out of the way 'for the greater public good'.

**ETA, of course its not the union's job to represent 'everyone else', but this is an instance where what they think is best for teachers is NOT what is best for their students.

Child care is AN issue. I feel pretty certain it isn't THE issue... and may not even be in the top three.

I'd also note that the media and administration have done such a good job of scaring people, they have some people afraid to send their kids to child care. It's the flip side of all of this 'get a vaccine or else bad things happen to us all' fear-mongering.

I would consider school to be child care as well - so yes, getting students back in person is priority. But I didn't think many (if any) school districts were full remote this fall. Have some continued to operate in full remote or even hybrid (some days with cohort X and others with Y)? As such, I've thought of things like daycare and early ed (Pre-K) to be of most importance. But primary, middle, and high school do play a huge role (plus pre- and post-school services).

I'd put childcare near the top, if not at the top, of items impacting current labor numbers given the discrepancy in women returning to the work place (as women disproportionately take on childcare duties).

What other factors are having a bigger impact in your mind? Seems like one is people being scared of going back to work. What are the others?

child care has been a factor forever. Why do you think it is all of a sudden impacting "current labor numbers" in ways that it wasn't before?

Two things:

1) why does it matter if child care has been an issue forever? Do have unemployment benefits. So have threats of communicable disease. Just because something has been around doesn’t mean it’s gotten worse.

Plus, with the growing number of households being dual income (among other things), childcare has become a growing problem - again, presence before doesn’t mean it can’t be a bigger problem now.

2) Labor numbers show more women left the workforce than men during the pandemic and have been slower to rejoin. That’s why it’s a particular concern with respect to the pandemic.

It matters because of your emphasis on "CURRENTLY". I see no significant difference in this respect between now and 1999 and 1975 and 1950. Feel free to show me.

I think the growing number of dual income households is because there are expanded childcare options available, compared to 25/50/75 years ago.

Wow, you don’t live in reality if you think dual income households is because of expanded childcare options. Yowza.