Temp-orary Insanity

Yesterday was a tears in the bathroom day.

I woke up with a headache, broke my glasses and spent the day in meetings. Not a stellar work day, but everyone has them once in a while. The thing that put me over the edge, was when I got home at 4:45 to find my kids eating lunch.

Yes, lunch. Their 2nd meal of the day was being consumed 8 hours after they'd been given breakfast by my husband. See, Dear A is on vacation again. And it's painful for everyone.

Because this vacation exceeds her contract, it's unpaid leave. We have a friend of Dear A's watching the kids for us a few hours each day, and have arranged shortened work days/alternate hours to cover off the rest, but she's charging a higher hourly rate. Dear A's making less and we're paying more. Painful, sure, but something I had sorted out and accepted.

The pain I'd forgotten (or blocked out maybe?) was the insanity around having a new caregiver in the mix. For some reason, I was thinking, "Ok, 2 weeks, no biggie. The kids know her, she's recommended...." instead of "Ok, I now have to train a new nanny, learn how to best communicate with a new person, re-sort out the dynamics of 3 caregivers in the house and so on and so on...." This blank on my part has resulted in backwards diapers, a runaway dog and the aforementioned food-less day for my kids. That's the part that really got to me yesterday - when my air-eater kid finally breaks down and asks for lunch you know he's really, really hungry. Realizing that, I felt like a really shitty mom. And had to hide in the bathroom for a quick cry.

Wage Cuts for Foreign Workers - Wait, Its Not Good News

On Wednesday the Canadian government quietly changed labour rules regarding foreign temporary workers. Employers will now be allowed to pay them 15 per cent less than the average wage.

This isn't good news. Yes, we have an affordable childcare shortage, and yes, temporary foreign workers from the Phillipines and Hong Kong have been wonderful at filling that need. But, we shouldn't be solving problems on the backs of other humans. Regardless of nationality or citizenship, everyone needs to be treated fairly.

Human Resources Minister Diane Finley stated “We are taking action to ensure that the temporary foreign worker program support our economic recovery and effectively responds to local labour market demands,” at a manufacturing plant in Nisku, Alta.

The need for workers will only get worse as baby boomers age out and retire. The need for caregivers will also increase, as elder care is needed for ailing baby boomers. Instead of looking at policies that encourage workplace flexibility for families, the government is going for a short term, easy win. On the backs of others.


Here's a link to CBC article with more details.

Jeebus, No One Tell My Nanny!

The Best Nanny Money Can Buy - a recent article from the NY Times Magazine digs into the world of $200,000 (USD) nannies. "A nanny can increase her marketability if she can help manage an art collection, draft correspondence, wash and fold 50 linens a day and help set up philanthropic events. Bonus points if she can do it all in Mandarin."