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Pretty much all of us have felt some kind of impact due to the pandemic. Our kids were home more, we had to figure out remote work, or maybe even had to quit our jobs to make sure that things stayed on track during the new normal.
The sad truth of the matter is that women’s careers bore the brunt of this “voluntary” downsizing, but this one employer at least is saying “no more.”
Women in the workplace have been disproportionately affected by COVID, erasing decades of gains. And it’s easy to see why when women typically earn less (even for the same jobs) than their partners. https://t.co/2jObc3Ifn0
— Aaron Genest ???? (@AaronGenest) January 11, 2021
Boss Aaron Genest took to Twitter to share how he responded when one of his female employees – also a wife and mother – contacted him after she felt her productivity was suffering. She and her husband were struggling to both keep up with work and with supervising their kids, who were doing school from home.
She asked to reduce her hours to 80% of what they were currently, even though she realized that her pay would also take a hit.
Geneset denied the request, and here’s why:
An employee came to me last week and asked to move to 80% time. Her husband, she said, was taking on some extra responsibility and they were having trouble keeping the kids on track during remote learning.
I said no.#sktech #skpoli #cdnpoli #COVID19SK #covid19
— Aaron Genest @smartbottom.bsky.social (@AaronGenest) January 11, 2021
“An employee came to me last week and asked to move to 80% time. Her husband, she said, was taking on some extra responsibility and they were having trouble keeping the kids on track during remote learning. I said no, you can’t become one of those women earning less because of COVID. No, you can’t sacrifice your career advancement because of a perceived lack of productivity. No, you don’t need to feel guilty about taking taking the time to make sure your kids are learning.”
So I said no. No, you can’t become one of the women earning less because of COVID. No, you can’t sacrifice your career advancement because of a perceived lack of productivity. No, you don’t need to feel guilty about taking the time to make sure your kids are learning.
— Aaron Genest ???? (@AaronGenest) January 11, 2021
What a novel concept, am I right?
And the rest of his thread was just as eye-opening and revelatory, too.
Every reason my employee gave was valid and rational (we hire great people), but the base assumption was wrong.
The assumption was that we should expect the same thing of our work lives now in terms of productivity and time commitment that we did with pre-COVID.
— Aaron Genest ???? (@AaronGenest) January 11, 2021
“Every reason my employee gave was valid and rational, but the base assumption was wrong. The assumption was that we should expect the same thing of our work lives now in terms of productivity and time commitment that we did pre-COVID.”
It’s a small thing. I’m a single boss in a large company among many employers.
But let me encourage anyone with the power to do so to deny this change. Work with your team from within, above, or below to support the people struggling through this.
Please.
— Aaron Genest ???? (@AaronGenest) January 11, 2021
“Let me encourage anyone with the power to do so to deny this change. Work with your team from within, above, or below to support the people struggling through this. Please.”
I hope every employer out there is listening, and is ready and willing to help people navigate this brave new world – otherwise, I fear they will eventually be left in the dust.
