A Life in Balance?
Reopening the Family-Work Debate
Will be published approx. on 1. July 2011
Book
Paperback/Softback
280 pages
978-0-7748-1968-8 (ISBN)
Description
Magazine articles, talk shows, and commercials advise us that our happiness and well-being rest on striking a balance between work and family. It goes unsaid, however, that the advice is based on an outmoded and unrealistic ideal.
This volume reopens the work-life balance debate. Contributors argue that to truly resolve work-family issues, we must recognize work and family life as overlapping aspects of a single existence, rather than separate and competing spheres. A Life in Balance? transcends prevailing myths by revealing how paid work (employment) and unpaid work (caregiving and housework) continue to be set against each other, particularly in support of neo-liberal agendas. A truly equitable national childcare policy must be informed by alternative approaches to integrating family and paid work, such as stay-at-home fathers, family policy in Quebec, and work and care in Aboriginal communities.
This volume reopens the work-life balance debate. Contributors argue that to truly resolve work-family issues, we must recognize work and family life as overlapping aspects of a single existence, rather than separate and competing spheres. A Life in Balance? transcends prevailing myths by revealing how paid work (employment) and unpaid work (caregiving and housework) continue to be set against each other, particularly in support of neo-liberal agendas. A truly equitable national childcare policy must be informed by alternative approaches to integrating family and paid work, such as stay-at-home fathers, family policy in Quebec, and work and care in Aboriginal communities.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Vancouver
Canada
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
6 tables
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Weight
420 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-7748-1968-8 (9780774819688)
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
Persons
Catherine Krull is an associate professor in the Department of Sociology and the Cultural Studies Program at Queen's University, cross-appointed to Women's Studies, and is an associate dean in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Justyna Sempruch is a researcher at the Center for Gender Studies at the University of Basel, Switzerland.
Contributors: Patrizia Albanese, Donna Baines, Maureen Baker, Andrea Doucet, Ann Duffy, Margrit Eichler, Bonnie Freeman, Judy Fudge, Margaret Hillyard Little, Nancy Mandell, Susan A. McDaniel, Norene Pupo, Sue Wilson
Contributors: Patrizia Albanese, Donna Baines, Maureen Baker, Andrea Doucet, Ann Duffy, Margrit Eichler, Bonnie Freeman, Judy Fudge, Margaret Hillyard Little, Nancy Mandell, Susan A. McDaniel, Norene Pupo, Sue Wilson
Content
Introduction: Diversifying the Model, Demystifying the Approach: The Work-Family Debate Reopened / Catherine Krull and Justyna Sempruch
Part 1: Transcending the Prevailing Myths
1 Destabilizing the Nuclear Family Ideal: Thinking Beyond Essentialisms, Universalism, and Binaries / Catherine Krull
2 Intergenerational Care Work: Mothering, Grandmothering, and Eldercare / Nancy Mandell and Sue Wilson
3 Maternal Employment, Childcare, and Public Policy / Maureen Baker
Part 2: Integrating Family and Work
4 Work, Care, Resistance, and Mothering: An Indigenous Perspective / Donna Baines and Bonnie Freeman
5 "I Am the Patient and Compassionate Cashier": Learning through Unpaid Household Work for Paid Work / Margrit Eichler
6 Employment in the New Economy and the Impact on Canadian Families / Ann Duffy and Norene Pupo
7 What Impedes Fathers' Participation in Care Work? Theorizing the Community as an Institutional Arena / Andrea Doucet
8 Addressing the Interlocking Complexity of Paid Work and Care: Lessons from Changing Family Policy in Quebec / Patrizia Albanese
Part 3: Feminist-Informed Family Initiatives and Family Visions
9 Beyond the "Cultural" Landscape of Care: Queering Childcare, Caregiver, and Work / Justyna Sempruch
10 Working-Time Regimes, Flexibility, and Work-Life Balance: Gender Equality and Families / Judy Fudge
11 The Increasing Invisibility of Mothering / Margaret Hillyard Little
Epilogue: A Feminist Vision for Caring-Employment Integration in Canada / Susan A. McDaniel
References; List of Contributors; Index
Part 1: Transcending the Prevailing Myths
1 Destabilizing the Nuclear Family Ideal: Thinking Beyond Essentialisms, Universalism, and Binaries / Catherine Krull
2 Intergenerational Care Work: Mothering, Grandmothering, and Eldercare / Nancy Mandell and Sue Wilson
3 Maternal Employment, Childcare, and Public Policy / Maureen Baker
Part 2: Integrating Family and Work
4 Work, Care, Resistance, and Mothering: An Indigenous Perspective / Donna Baines and Bonnie Freeman
5 "I Am the Patient and Compassionate Cashier": Learning through Unpaid Household Work for Paid Work / Margrit Eichler
6 Employment in the New Economy and the Impact on Canadian Families / Ann Duffy and Norene Pupo
7 What Impedes Fathers' Participation in Care Work? Theorizing the Community as an Institutional Arena / Andrea Doucet
8 Addressing the Interlocking Complexity of Paid Work and Care: Lessons from Changing Family Policy in Quebec / Patrizia Albanese
Part 3: Feminist-Informed Family Initiatives and Family Visions
9 Beyond the "Cultural" Landscape of Care: Queering Childcare, Caregiver, and Work / Justyna Sempruch
10 Working-Time Regimes, Flexibility, and Work-Life Balance: Gender Equality and Families / Judy Fudge
11 The Increasing Invisibility of Mothering / Margaret Hillyard Little
Epilogue: A Feminist Vision for Caring-Employment Integration in Canada / Susan A. McDaniel
References; List of Contributors; Index