To think that staggering work/school times would help many working parents?

[Cattucino]

Hear me out!

I often think about how it might simplify things for alot of people if the "average" working day started at say 9.30 or 10.00.

When I was at college (many years ago) our class actually voted in favour of a later start time - it allowed parents to see children off to school before starting their day without having to source childcare early in the morning and work around a longer drop off (eg. Childminders, relatives, breakfast clubs).

I've always had jobs with irregular shift patterns so I'm by no means in a nice little 9-5 bubble but I do think there are many roles which follow this pattern and that it poses a problem for lots of parents.

Surely having a staggered start time to that sort of day would solve problems for alot of people - even if your own shifts don't follow such a pattern it might open up an oppertunity for friends, neighbours, relatives to help each other out more rather than dropping children off at breakfast clubs and childminders really early in the morning?

So who looks after the teachers children if everyone starts later?

Or if i'm a teacher & I fancy starting at 9:30 where are your kids going to be bfore then?

so if school starts at usual time and work starts later, I just have more after school childcare to fund, and it encroached on dinner and bedtime.

I think it would be much better if flexitime became the norm. People could start and finish at times most convenient for their needs.

DP can start as early as 7, I can start any time until 10. Finish times are between 3 (him) and 7 (me). Imagine how well that would suit if we had school age kids? One could start work early and leave in time for pick-up, the other could do drop off and go in a bit later. (I concede this probably wouldn't work for people with a long commute).

I also concede that this wouldn't be feasible for jobs where there are shift patterns and minimum staffing levels, but for most office type jobs it'd be fine.

It would help some but also make childcare more expensive for those who cant do those hours. Their kids will need longer in morning club or will end up needing childcare.

Also what effect would it have on children, they would be leaving school at what 5-6? Do homework have dinner and then straight to bed? Where thier down time?

I do see your point but it would take a seismic shift in attitudes towards work/life balance for most companies to make it work.

Shifting the 9-5 to 9:30-5:30 for office workers would help.

But then what about other places of employment as well - the gp surgery which opens at 8:30. That's at least an extra hour on childcare for those employed there to find. (although office workers might also stand a fighting chance at a morning gp appt without too much hassle).

The bus driver who has to start their round at 8 to get the children to school on time.

It goes back to school isn't childcare. And our society isn't set up for family life.

We could also question why is the school day 9-3 (or thereabouts) and not 9-5? Why do children only have 5 hours of learning a day (assuming an hour for lunch).

Unfortunately whatever changes, someone will always lose out. And usually those who choose to teach miss out the most. teaching someone else's children when yours is having a special assembly, and not being able to get the time off because there is no one who can cover you for a couple of hours. Or how do you drop your children off to school and still be at your school of work on time?

As a teacher- no thank you! I think a massive % of women are employed in either teaching or childcare or education in some way. I think it would hinder many. Certainly in the outer areas of cities where there are lots of schools and families

Flexi time is the answer. For many many jobs it wouldn't matter whether you started at 9am or midnight as long as you put the hours in. Obviously there are many exceptions, but where it's possible people should have the option.

What I can't understand at our local schools is why the high school start so early and the middle school/infants schools start so late when research has proved that teens function better if they start their day later but as we all know young children are often up at the crack of dawn.

Ds has to be in school by 8.40am but the middle school down the road is 8.50am and the infant school is 8.45am. Now the infant school has wrap around care avai;able fropm 7.30 am available which is great but why don't they then start at say 8.30am (less time for working parents to pay for), then the middle school could start at 8.40 or 8.45am giving parents of the younger end of the age group time to get to work with ther high school kids starting at 9am as they arent reliant on childcare, gives them time to walk cycle to school rather than contribute to the parental traffic jam and gives them a later start to the day.

I agree OP.

KatyMac the world doesn’t revolve around teachers children! Just because it wouldn’t work for one section of society is no reason to prevent it for everybody.

"Sorry you can't buy any milk, our staff are doing flexitime and the shop opens at 10am today"

"Sorry there is no radio this morning, the staff are coming in at 9.30am"

Hmmm...I can think of a great many jobs where this would not be possible. Teaching being the most obvious one.

Unfortunately whatever changes, someone will always lose out. And usually those who choose to teach miss out the most

I cannot agree with this comment. I have huge respect for teachers, but they aren't the only people who struggle with school drop off / pick up !

It's a good idea.

I am in London and it's virtually impossible to even find a 9-5 job. All full time jobs seem to want 8.30am starts and/or 6/6.30pm finishes. You're lucky to find a 9-5.30 job. Most jobs now are less labour intensive thanks to technology. Employers don't really need us to be there for so long. It's just to make the plebs feel lucky to be in employment and therefore they want their money's worth.

Ridiculous idea. You assume everyone works in a job similar to yours.

What time do you propose bus/train drivers start? Pilots? Police officers? Prison officers? Nurses? Doctors receptionists? Bin men? Cafes?

Do you think asda should shorten their opening hours?

I teach and it just wouldn't work for me at all. Nice idea, but the reality would be impossible.

Obviously, flexi time won’t work for every organisation.

However, there are numerous examples where it WILL work - and where WFH is a possibility too.

So in cases where it can and will work, using it will not only make life easier for working parents but reduce traffic and congestion.

Why people have to say ‘yes but’ I do not know.

Take for example, most people are off on Christmas Day.

‘Yes, but what about nurses?’

Obviously, nurses have to work on Christmas Day. That doesn’t mean everybody should have to because nurses do!

I think there are plenty of jobs were this would be possible. I know this because there are already plenty of jobs that offer flexitime/later starts on request for this very reason. It’s not revolutionary. It already exists. But I also think there are probably more jobs were it would be easily doable but isn’t happening for whatever reason. And as always there are jobs that it wouldn’t be possible. But that’s like everything else. There isn’t a one size fits all approach. But certainly room for improvement.

Agree continually! It’s as if people think if it doesn’t work for all it shouldnt be available to any.

Workplaces that can offer flexible working and working from home should, in fact I think that we should start with that first - ALL workplaces must offer flexible working and working from home UNLESS they can prove a demonstrable reason not to.

Puts the onus on employers to stop thinking that what worked when the workplace was dominated by men with a wife at home still works. It doesn't.

Plenty of office jobs could offer this.

I have got to go through the process of asking for working from home which I feel very jittery about even though there is zero reason why it wouldn't work - but the onus is on me rather than my employer. They hold all the cards.

Flexible working is already a thing. Every employee has a legal right to request flexible working. The business then has to allow it or give a reason that has to be within certain constraints.

This is not revolutionary.

And a 10am start time couldn't work for masses of people although good for those that it could.

I've often worked 9.30-5.30. It hasn't helped with childcare because I still need to travel to work and I've never worked somewhere that was less than 30 minutes away.

whitesoxx employees can request it but that's arse about face - employers should make it available without employees having to specifically and individually request it and potentially be denied it or worry that it'll look bad on their record etc.

Employers should be obliged to make it available upfront, or have a very very good reason as to why not.

We already have this in a number of jobs. It's called flexible working. However, as seems to always happen, you've assumed that all other careers in the world are just the same as yours in terms of hours and time sensitivity.

I think children attend school and work hard for about the right amount of hours at the times they are most receptive to concentrating and learning. Anything else is about the convenience of the adult not the needs of the child, and that's why we call it childcare outside of these times, and learning inside of those times.

American companies do this. DH works for an American company in the U.K. and starts at 9.30am. He leaves at 6.00pm.

It works very well for everyone and has meant that, if they want, people can go back to work quicker than they might.

They also have a scheme where you have Friday afternoons off in the summer. It’s all very family oriented and I wish more British companies would follow suit.

I think it would be much better if flexitime became the norm

Sorry Mrs Smith, what with you gowned up n'all, but the anaesthetist fancied a bit of a lay in today, school run, pop to the gym and do a bit of shopping before he scrubs up.

Society works well on time parameters

Why are some people being sarcastic because some jobs are time sensitive? It’s a rather narrow view to have!