Did both of your parents work during your childhood?

[StuntAcorn]

Both mine and DH's parents all worked during our childhoods.
We're early 70s babies.

Apparently this is quite uncommon within our circles, as most of them experienced one full time SAHP.

I lived in a village. Both parents worked full time from when I was about five. I either walked to my Nan's or walked home and went to a neighbour's. A lot of childcare was informal and nobody really knew where you were (and weren't really bothered, so long as you turned up at mealtimes)

80s baby. Both parents worked full time.

I went to nursery - which I often hear people on here claiming didn't exist in the 80s.. and had a childminder after school

My Dad worked full time. My Mum returned to work when we were in secondary school. 70s babies.

My DM only went back to work once I was about 14, and considered responsible enough to mind siblings 4 and 6 years younger after school.
There would have been no option for her earlier, no family anywhere near to help, nurseries were hardly heard of, and we didn’t have the sort of neighbours you could ask to childmind regularly, paid or not.

This was decades ago, though.

Late 70s baby.

My Dad always worked full time, long hours.
My Mum went back to work when me and my sibling were 4 & 5, and both in school. She changed careers from what she had done previously and worked full time for the rest of our childhoods, becoming a very senior leader in our teens.

Childcare was a combination of after school club and my Gran.

I said earlier in the thread that my mother had us young and she didn’t work until we were all in school but she hated being at home! She told us every day, Don’t end up like me! She did qualify in childcare later in life and loved it.

None of my friends’ mothers were professional but several worked part-time in the local hospital.

Born in the mid-70s. My mum was a full time GP and my dad was a uni lecturer. He did a lot of the childcare as he had school holidays off etc and generally worked more flexible hours.

I was very unusual among my friends. I think I was the only one whose mum worked full time. She was an excellent role model though. I have a successful career and never considered being a SAHM. I have always earned the same or more than my husband.

Yes, both worked, born in 1968

I would also add that both my grandmothers worked full time as well,

That would imply a pretty high household income nowadays. I wonder if it was back then?
My parents couldn’t have afforded a nanny even on two full time teacher salaries I don’t think.
I presume lots of people relied on family or maybe neighbours.

Born in the mid-60s.
My dad worked full-time in London, commuting each day.
My mum was a teacher, working in the primary school we all attended. So, I was never really a latch-key child or went to child-care (didn't exist then, to my recollection). She was home with us after school and in the holidays. She returned to work when I was rising 4, unusual in the late 60s.

I only had one parent and yes she worked.

After school I went to my auntie's house down the road. She worked as a TA so she did school hours.

I was born late 60's, my dad always worked, l think my mum went back when l was about 10 ?and my sister nine,...she worked always after that, we would walk home from school and let ourselves in..we loved it, children's tv and snacks until she got home.

'73 sisters couple years apart either side. sahm.dad career changed -at right time -we had lovely life really (80s boom). my ma never worked til i left home(17) but did lots of further studies, so when did get a job ws very much a "proffessional career"

Late 70s born. Dad worked full time and mum did tutoring so I just remember hours and hours of random teenagers sitting at the kitchen table after I got back from school. My dad worked very nearby (own business) so started early then came home for breakfast, lunch and finished about 4.30.

All my siblings were born in Kate sixties. Mum didn’t work, apart from a cleaning job once a week (loved going to the house in the holidays), and then a part time job when at senior school ( with in school hours).

DM didn't work until we were in secondary school. This was the noughties so not long ago. People saying both parents worked from when you were young where did you go while they were working?

I was born in the mid sixties, my sister 18 months before me and my brother nearly 6 years after me. My mum was a SAHM mum until my DB was 2 then she worked part time. My dad had two jobs during my early childhood to support us and only stopped the second job when my DM started part time work. She went full time when we were at secondary school, working 12 hour night shifts on a 3 on/3 off basis so she could be home to see us off to school in the morning and at home when we got home from school. She continued on the 12 hours shift rotation until they moved when she was 56 and my dad was 60 and they both retired.

Born in 60s. Both parents worked, mum a nurse.

Born 81 - both parents worked. My dad worked shifts and we were also farmed out to a neighbour. A teenage girl used to look after us after school for a bit and then we had our own door keys when I was 9 and my sister was 11.

I don't remember it being particularly unusual. Most of my friends had two working parents. My grandma also worked in various part time jobs when my mum was a child in the 50s.

Dad worked full time and Mum wasn’t sahm until I was about 7 when she worked very part time hours to earn “pocket money” for family treats.

DF tried to convince her to work full time when db and I were in our teens but mum said a hard no - her reasoning was df was earning very well by then so financially they didn’t need her to and no way would df step up and do half the house work. They are now both retired and he still doesn’t know how to use the washing machine because it’s “new” - dm pointed out they’ve had it 8 years!!! Very few mums worked at my primary. Secondary was more mixed but still mostly part time.

At school or at home/friends. There was a door key hidden in the back garden in the same place. If you left last for school you locked up and left the key in the same place. First child home opened up and back door just left unlocked from then on!

Early 80s and both parents worked. My mum was educated up to the equivalent of A levels and had quite a good secretarial job but she had to leave when she was pregnant, until recently I had no idea that was a thing then. But there was no mat leave as such and jobs certainly at her workplace were not held open for pregnant women. She could have reapplied and gone back full time but that didn't work as no childcare. My dad was uneducated, had not managed to complete his GCSEs, and did manual factory work, usually night shifts. My mum then got a part time shift job when I started school, so she'd do earlies and my dad would do lates, I was used to always someone around which was lovely and both parents were equally hands on but my dad was definitely the fun one. I don't think my mum was particularly maternal and I actually felt she resented me a lot for ruining her career. I grew up mostly having to be quiet at all times as one parent was always asleep ready for work. And also I grew up being very aware of just how tight money was!

Early 80s baby. Both parents worked and ended up buying a guest house so they didn't need childcare.

I mean fair enough for older kids but people claiming their mothers always worked from when they were proper young and back decades ago where did the kid go? Because a three year old can't unlock a door by itself although I do know quite a few elders who claim their children could do everything from the age of 3 😂