Working to Place Family at the Center of Life: Dual-Earner and Single-Parent Strategies

Abstract

There are two basic types of work-family strategies: workplace-based strategies and family-centered strategies. In the past, attention has been placed mostly on work policies. This article focuses on members of dual-earner and single-parent families who have actively placed family at the center of their lives. The strategies they adopt depend upon their position in the labor market as well as marital status. Some dual-earner families jointly calculate scheduling and job trajectories while utilizing benefits from both of their employees; others reluctantly coparent because of underemployment. Single mothers who have professional or technical skills try to make special accommodations with bosses or they become contract workers, while less skilled single mothers need benefits in order not to have to work several jobs. In addition, some single mothers have developed extensive networks and advocate for more community support of child rearing. Most working parents committed to keeping their families at the center have pursued nontraditional career paths. Ideologies about families and parenting may shape strategies about employment more often than workplace norms or work-family policies.