Current Events > Do you consider parenting a Job/career?

(+) Yeah! (+)

Assume full time stay at home parenting.

Its more of an obligation/responsibility.

That used to be a thing, but of course, it wasn't enough to tax just the men. Everyone has to work, and everyone has to be taxed.

The economy never failed because only one of two parents was actively working at one time
Also there were

No AI=more manpower needed
Less robot=Same
More jobs=More manpower x3
and a smaller population (So back then we had far more spaces for people to get jobs, and the stores would have 8-10 registers open instead of just 2, at most.

Now everything from cost of living to quality of life is all fucked up since the death of the 1-income family. Back then this house was clean, floors mopped, waxed, etc.

Now it's in a state of high disrepair.

No, but I do consider it a comparable task.

there's not really any compensation or path for advancement as a parent. it's closer to a hobby.

No, but saying that it's not a job or a career isn't an insult.

Not really, but that doesn't mean it's not hard af lol

It's a full time occupation.

Do you get paid for it? Then, no.

My daughter just turned a year old and I was stay at home dad for 6 months before job hunting. Parenting is hard as hell. Still you dont earn anything from it so its probably a no even though its more taxing than most jobs.

OniLink5000 posted...

there's not really any compensation or path for advancement as a parent.

That could also be used to describe most jobs

Wouldn't call it a career.
Depends on the parent on if its a job. Being a full time stay at home parent doesnt necessarily mean they actually parent.

No. It's an optional hobby.

doshindude posted...

No. It's an optional hobby.

Doesn't fall under any definition of hobby.

That's just being silly.

If pooping is a job consider me Miles Davis

No

Under the broadest, colloquial definition you could call it a job, but no; it's essential work and should be regarded with the highest respect (for those who put in the effort), but calling it a "career" is a framing that gives space to assholes who consider it a woman's job and want to discourage women from seeking fulfilling careers outside the home.

Its the most important job and every other job only exists to assist in that mission

It's a duty

Domestic labor of parenting is absolutely a full-time job. Even if you have a wide support network of people who can help relieve that burden, it is a job that never stops.

Many in the US do not have the luxury of wide support nets like that however and it is indeed a full-time exhausting job. Many people within the US also do not value the toll of domestic labor to begin with nearly as much as they should, though, so the no vote skew doesn't really surprise me.

I'd call it a job, but not a career.

Maybe if you're a nanny.

I'm sure it would feel like a full time job for the first 5 years. Once the kid starts school then there's 8 hours a day off the schedule, plus nights.

Is it a job or career? No. You dont get paid for it. Quite the opposite in fact.

Is it work? Yes. Obviously.

Sephirothe posted...

Is it a job or career? No. You dont get paid for it. Quite the opposite in fact.

Is it work? Yes. Obviously.

Good way of putting it, but if I asked someone what their job is, and they said stay-at-home parent, that would be a legitimate answer, compared to saying they're unemployed.

Yes, the whole hate parents, hate kids thing is relatively new. Poisonous fruit, born from millenials (so you know its the kind of thing you need to stop).

Dunno how it works out for everyone, but most people came out a mom.. and while you dont have to like that fact, they spent x amount of time tolerating your existence and so the least you can do is give them that so you can get on with yours

KanWan posted...

Yes, the whole hate parents, hate kids thing is relatively new. Poisonous fruit, born from millenials (so you know its the kind of thing you need to stop).

Dunno how it works out for everyone, but most people came out a mom.. and while you dont have to like that fact, they spent x amount of time tolerating your existence and so the least you can do is give them that so you can get on with yours

Ai?

Evening_Dragon posted...

Ai?

Just the plain ol truth

For all the grief we can safely give our older folk, we do that because we never bothered to consider how much and what length of time of our stupidity went on for >_>

KanWan posted...

Just the plain ol truth

For all the grief we can safely give our older folk, we do that because we never bothered to consider how much and what length of time of our stupidity went on for >_>

<_>

Once saw a t-shirt that said that it's the toughest job you'll ever love.

parenting is a non-paying job.

KanWan posted...

Yes, the whole hate parents, hate kids thing is relatively new. Poisonous fruit, born from millenials (so you know its the kind of thing you need to stop).

Dunno how it works out for everyone, but most people came out a mom.. and while you dont have to like that fact, they spent x amount of time tolerating your existence and so the least you can do is give them that so you can get on with yours

You dont owe your parents anything, even if they did a good job.

ai123 posted...

Doesn't fall under any definition of hobby.

That's just being silly.

This. Good Lord.

Parenting is both the most wonderful and hardest thing I have ever done. It is so much more fulfilling than any job I have ever had, and also much more difficult.

It is not a career, and it is certainly not a hobby. It is its own unique thing. Really important for some, not of interest to others, all of which is fine. People should live their lives in a way that makes them happy. For me, I cant imagine life without being a Dad.

Glob posted...

You dont owe your parents anything, even if they did a good job.

You dont owe anyone anything doesnt mean that you dont just because you can formulate that you dont

As I witnessed seeing a young mom with 4 ~4-7yo kids shopping in an Aldi yesterday, parenting is definitely work.

KanWan posted...

You dont owe anyone anything doesnt mean that you dont just because you can formulate that you dont

Youre literally not saying anything here.

Glob posted...

You dont owe your parents anything, even if they did a good job.

Maybe not, but I will always be very thankful to my parents for their love and support, and that makes me want to show them the same should we ever be in that position.

You wouldn't call brushing your teeth or wiping your ass or bathing your body a job, so neither should you call parenting a job. It's an essential biological function, so it's of higher priority than a job or career. Likening parenting to a job gives it some rather awful implications.

ai123 posted...

Maybe not, but I will always be very thankful to my parents for their love and support, and that makes me want to show them the same should we ever be in that position.

And thats fair enough. Its perfectly reasonable for you to feel that way.

Whats not reasonable is other people telling you that you should feel that way.

Glob posted...

And thats fair enough. Its perfectly reasonable for you to feel that way.

Whats not reasonable is other people telling you that you should feel that way.

I wouldn't do that. People's experiences vary wildly.

Not really

It's not, but that doesn't mean it isn't hard work especially when your kid is high maintenance or has any form of disability. The toughest will always be your first newborn because you WILL lose sleep. The toughest part of being a parent is realizing that a baby isn't something you can compromise with. That baby will cry and you have to play a guessing game to why they are crying and sometimes there isn't even a right answer, that baby will cry sometimes because it can. You will lose some of your "freedom" because it does take time and effort to properly raise your baby.

It was tough with my first child, but I was blessed to have a second child that was much easier to handle...or we just got better at raising kids because my daughter was really really high maintenance. It does get better and easier, especially with your baby growing up to a kid...but then it comes with its own set of problems because ultimately your kid will grow up to be an individual with their own lives and you get to be part of that journey.

What does this topic mean? Like do you consider the SAH parent as having made an equal contribution to the other spouse who presumably makes the familys sole income from a professional job?

Glob posted...

Youre literally not saying anything here.

Theres something there, for sure

We dont have to is what youre proposing, but that logic never pans out well for anyone tbh

iGenesis posted...

What does this topic mean? Like do you consider the SAH parent as having made an equal contribution to the other spouse who presumably makes the familys sole income from a professional job?

If it means to take care of your child, then yes imo I think it's equally as important.

This often becomes less of a semantic discussion about the definition of 'job', and more about people wanting to minimise the vitally important role of the stay at home parent (usually, but not always, a woman).

Sometimes it's motivated by nihilism, misanthropy, and disdain for people who choose to have kids. Sometimes it's motivated by a desire to make the traditionally female role subsidiary to that of the male 'provider' (and so justify them as 'head of the household' and caster of the household vote).

Either way, it's bollocks. I don't care if you want to call it a job, a career, an occupation, an obligation, or a calling. It's value is every bit the equal of those things.