Working Families; An issue kept well hidden

I'm sure those of you who follow me on social media are aware that I spent the last two months overseas, two weeks of which I was privileged to spend with a charity called working families.

My desk at working families :)

Working families is a charity aimed specifically individuals who are either caring for children or other sick individuals. Their bases currently only exist in Scotland and England but their work has been monumental to climbing over the wall of difficulties that both men and women face in the work place. It is steadily becoming a symbol of workplace flexibility which multiple studies have proven increases productivity [http://www.forbes.com/sites/ccl/2011/06/29/flexibility-can-boost-employee-productivity/#75eaa5b25d04]

My initial thoughts about the charity were that they would provide legal advice to all those who called on their hotline [0300 012 0312 ] however I quickly discovered their efforts were far greater and more diverse. Within the two weeks that I spent there I helped organize networking events, think tanks, policy presentations and research compositions. It was a massive variety and I can only say that the members within the office of working families had an adept ability to switch from paper work to practical work. I found my self constantly amazed by their empathy, communication and legal knowledge. Continuously the members were grounded, practical and realistic as they dealt with the problems of the modern workplace.

Some of the general issues included:

• Helping with employer/employee relations
• Explaining rights to leave, sick leave and other benefits
• Analyzing potential discrimination cases
• Assisting individuals in continuing work place progression
• Decoding some of the work-related benefits

Those who live in any country where benefit schemes are enforced will know their complex nature. Yet Working Families manages to decode some of the broader issues of the new welfare policy Universal Credit [http://www.workingfamilies.org.uk/articles/869/]. At a policy presentation Working Families stood for the ability of low income families to have access not only to jobs but to quality child care.

Too often hard working employees are forced to turn down jobs that offer them more responsibility and pay because the jobs have less flexibility and mean that individuals lose out on benefits. This benefit loss can have the consequence of costing more than they are earning. Unfortunately research [http://www.bbc.com/news/business-35475350] shows the startling truth that Universal Credit is dropping off key benefits and losing that practical aspect of welfare.

Key reasons that families lose money is because;

• Child care is too expensive
• They lose flexibility increasing the need for extra care
• Often gain expenses like eating out and more travel

Additionally without support families may face;

• increased levels of stress
• decreased time together
• Higher levels of anxiety
• relationship/life dissatisfaction

Interestingly one of the conferences I attended with Working Families highlighted that money was not the only factor influencing a families' ability to progress up a career ladder. After several focus groups the culmination of the responses revealed that families are craving more family time. Money is no longer a driving force of work. Yes it's a relevant factor but the study revealed that if more money sacrificed time with each other- progression in terms of pay increase loses out.

A policy conference with Working Families 

This need to spend time with family should not be looked upon as a factor of 'laziness'. Families, particularly those in financial hardship, often pull close together and form strong bonds. These relationships are vital for children to build strong foundations as they move into the future and for the healing of sick relatives. Some families are also facing the potential loss of sick relatives, meaning that money is not as valuable as time.

In this modern world we are seeing an increased value upon time, particularly time that can be spent with those we love. Working Families is striving to work with both employers and employees asa vital middle man that can strike up the right balance between the two.

The universal credit scheme was invented to produce a welfare scheme that did not punish individuals for being out of work. It attempts to understand the new value of family time and the issues face the 'sandwich' generation, where families are both caring for children and sick or elderly relatives. While it attempts to ensure that nobody will live off welfare for longer than necessary it supports the often tiresome and difficult transition between welfare and work. This is beneficial because;

• Provides families with some respite when in financial trouble
• Allows families to care without bringing in external help which can be expensive
• Prevents individuals from being exploited while searching for a job
• Provides people with dignity and pride
• Allows for families to save while progressing through below minimum wage jobs and support themselves in an emergency rather than falling back to where they were

On welfare it is difficult to save money therefore giving people the opportunity to earn a little more as their welfare slowly decreases allows individuals to save some money. Savings provide financial security and comfort – which has been proven in the past to make people feel more comfortable and to stress less.

Multiple times I have discussed the impact of stress on the body. It not only causes many expansive physiological issues such as adrenal, heart and liver failure. These issues can tax already over worked families, causing child carers, sick carers or vulnerable individuals greater issues.

Stress has also been linked to psychological issues and outbursts. Anxiety, clinical depression and disorders such as schizophrenia or bi-polar are frequently connected to high stress levels. It is clear that stress can be minimized when fiscal stability is present. Although it is not the only factor in these issues.

The use of fiscal stability refers to the presence of these factors

• Ability to pay bills as and when they fall due
• The ability to afford food that is of reasonable quality
• The ability to pay for some extra curricular costs such as eat-out food, entertainment or luxury service (massage, facial)*
• To be comfortable with financial ability to prepare or repair any necessity equipment such as laundry machine, dish washing machine or light bulbs
• Some ability to save (eg. To save 10% of earning) and still pay bills

* For families with children this is especially important because young children often like to participate in extra curricular classes such as dance, basketball, surfing or martial arts. These classes can tax financially strained families, sometimes causing social awkwardness for young children. While it is understandable that there must be some cuts to extracurricular activities it's reasonable to allow every person the opportunity to relax through one non-necessity service.

It is undoubted that if England wishes to encourage progression they must inspire financial stability. Financial stability is the way to encourage individuals to aspire. Unless the general populace feels that by accepting a job with higher levels of responsibility and better pay they will not lose out but gain valuable experience and satisfaction there will never be any progression. Other countries have also witnessed higher levels of productivity when minimum wage is at a 'living' level.

The steadtler pens in the top left corner actually
became very popular around the office

I will note here that organizations have raised the alert that minimum wage is the 'average' cost of living for the entire nation. It is important to know that a single person family will be able to live of the minimum wage comfortably while a family with two children will struggle. As lawyers it's important we don't pre-judge other families expecting that they can support themselves on minimum wage. Depending on circumstances it may not always be viable.

I would encourage young aspiring lawyers and current legal professionals to explore the website [http://www.workingfamilies.org.uk/] and consider becoming a Change Maker or registered donor today. The charity is constantly expanding the areas in which it works – working as a empathetic policy union that promotes for the well being of employees and employers rather than higher pay and lesser hours. It's difficult to summarize the exact issues that Working Families deals with because they are so dynamic and do respond quickly to the changing issues within the work place.

Uniquely the charity is also recognizing the growing paternal expectations for young fathers. Some closely related organizations that Working Families has connected with researched the growth in child-minding fathers. It was found that while women are still predominantly the primary carers, males were taking a larger interest in the primary care role for children. Currently men are limited in their ability to take over this role as prejudice is beginning to turn away from women and back towards men. Although males were noted to spend more time doing 'fun' things with children while women completed more domestic tasks.

In a study by [https://aifs.gov.au/publications/family-matters/issue-37/achieving-family-supportive-workplace-and-community] it was discovered that women felt more able to disrupt their working day to tend to a sick child then men. After further investigation it was concluded that often the work place culture was the leading factor in this feeling. While corporations may present a face of gender equality the reality for many males is that when they disrupt work for a child they often feel that their work is at risk.

Working Families is still trying to explore the extent of this cultural phenomenon. I hope soon I will be able to revisit the topic and provide a more comprehensive analysis of the new work-place prejudice. Although perhaps soon with support of Working Families the picture will present more equality and less gender bias for in this day and age woman are no longer primary carers, they are merely one of the two primary carers.

Lulu Hensman