
Finding Time
The Economics of Work-Life Conflict
Heather Boushey(Author)
Harvard University Press
Published on 19. April 2016
Book
Hardback
360 pages
978-0-674-66016-8 (ISBN)
Description
Employers today are demanding more and more of employees' time. And from campaign barbecues to the blogosphere, workers across the United States are raising the same worried question: How can I get ahead at my job while making sure my family doesn't fall behind?
Heather Boushey argues that resolving work-life conflicts is as vital for individuals and families as it is essential for realizing the country's productive potential. The federal government, however, largely ignores the connection between individual work-life conflicts and more sustainable economic growth. The consequence: business and government treat the most important things in life-health, children, elders-as matters for workers to care about entirely on their own time and dime. That might have worked in the past, but only thanks to a hidden subsidy: the American Wife, a behind-the-scenes, stay-at-home fixer of what economists call market failures. When women left the home-out of desire and necessity-the old system fell apart. Families and the larger economy have yet to recover.
But change is possible. Finding Time presents detailed innovations to help Americans find the time they need and help businesses attract more productive workers. A policy wonk with working-class roots and a deep understanding of the stresses faced by families up and down the income ladder, Heather Boushey demonstrates with clarity and compassion that economic efficiency and equity do not have to be enemies. They can be reconciled if we have the vision to forge a new social contract for business, government, and private citizens.
Heather Boushey argues that resolving work-life conflicts is as vital for individuals and families as it is essential for realizing the country's productive potential. The federal government, however, largely ignores the connection between individual work-life conflicts and more sustainable economic growth. The consequence: business and government treat the most important things in life-health, children, elders-as matters for workers to care about entirely on their own time and dime. That might have worked in the past, but only thanks to a hidden subsidy: the American Wife, a behind-the-scenes, stay-at-home fixer of what economists call market failures. When women left the home-out of desire and necessity-the old system fell apart. Families and the larger economy have yet to recover.
But change is possible. Finding Time presents detailed innovations to help Americans find the time they need and help businesses attract more productive workers. A policy wonk with working-class roots and a deep understanding of the stresses faced by families up and down the income ladder, Heather Boushey demonstrates with clarity and compassion that economic efficiency and equity do not have to be enemies. They can be reconciled if we have the vision to forge a new social contract for business, government, and private citizens.
Reviews / Votes
The feminist econ book I never knew I needed...Finding Time is just as essential as Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In and Anne-Marie Slaughter's Unfinished Business. In fact, it picks up where they left off...Boushey makes the financial case for reform, pointing to data that proves that policies like paid leave increase productivity in the workplace, decrease turnover, and, in turn, fuel the economy as a whole. -- Michelle Ruiz * Vogue * [Boushey] present[s] evidence that workplaces with flexible, accommodating schedules are more productive than those that emphasize long hours and rigid schedules...[Finding Time] note[s] that countries with extensive work-life policies have higher social mobility and are often more competitive than the United States. -- Stephanie Coontz * American Prospect * [An] ambitious, fast-paced, fact-filled, and accessible book...[Boushey] has a masterful understanding of the nuts and bolts of policy design and has impressively cataloged an array of promising state and local examples. Her policy proposals are not off the beaten path, but her overall argument-simple as it sounds-is a fresh one. -- Janet Gornick * Science * This thoughtful and engaging book exposes a vitally important and timely topic, and Boushey is uniquely positioned to address it. -- Ruth Milkman, City University of New York Heather Boushey presents a compelling case for why achieving the right balance of time with our families and at our workplaces is vital to the economic success and prosperity of our nation. I've been honored to see her work up close through 'The Shriver Report' and I'm now glad that it's going to be available to an even wider audience. This is a must read for the public and policymakers alike. -- Maria Shriver Time is our most precious asset, and families feel like they have less and less of it. Heather Boushey's important book shows that there is much that policy can do to reclaim our time and our lives. In a rational world its arguments would have an important impact on the future of American economic policy. -- Lawrence H. Summers, President Emeritus and Charles W. Eliot University Professor, Harvard University This is a thoughtful and intelligent book. -- Tyler Cowen * Bloomberg View * Boushey argues that better family-leave policies should not only improve the lives of struggling families but also boost workers' productivity and reduce firms' costs. * The Economist * Boushey offers an ambitious public policy agenda to address the increasingly common situation where both the mother and father work outside the home and thus have less time to care for their families... [A] brilliant book. -- Suzanne Kahn * Dissent * Boushey presents detailed innovations to help Americans find the time they need and help businesses attract more productive workers, revealing how economic efficiency and equity do not have to be enemies. * ISE Magazine *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge, Mass
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
3 halftones, 9 line illustrations, 21 graphs, 10 tables
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 156 mm
ISBN-13
978-0-674-66016-8 (9780674660168)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
04/2016
1st Edition
Harvard University Press
€29.84
Available for download
Person
Heather Boushey is President and CEO of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth and former Chief Economist on Hillary Clinton's transition team. She is the author of Finding Time: The Economics of Work-Life Conflict and coeditor of After Piketty: The Agenda for Economics and Inequality (both from Harvard). The New York Times has called Boushey one of the "most vibrant voices in the field" and Politico twice named her one of the top 50 "thinkers, doers, and visionaries transforming American politics."