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Work Matters

How Parents’ Jobs Shape Children’s Well-Being
By Maureen Perry-Jenkins
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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Work Matters explores how new parents in low-wage jobs manage the dual challenges of work and childcare. Based on extensive research and over fifteen hundred interviews, Maureen Perry-Jenkins reveals the day-to-day struggles and successes of these families. The book highlights the significant impact of workplace conditions on parental engagement, child development, and mental health, emphasising the importance of supportive employer policies.
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Format: Hardback
$4499
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

Ideal for educators, policymakers, social scientists, and anyone interested in family dynamics, workplace equity, and child development, particularly those focused on low-wage workers and new parents.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

How new parents in low-wage jobs juggle the demands of work and childcare, and the easy ways employers can help.

Low-wage workers make up the largest group of employed parents in the United States, yet scant attention has been given to their experiences as new mothers and fathers. Work Matters brings the unique stories of these diverse individuals to light. Drawing on years of research and more than fifteen hundred family interviews, Maureen Perry-Jenkins describes how new parents cope with the demands of infant care while holding down low-wage, full-time jobs. She considers how managing all of these responsibilities has long-term implications for child development.

She examines why some parents and children thrive while others struggle, demonstrates how specific job conditions impact parental engagement and child well-being, and discusses common-sense and affordable ways that employers can provide support.

In the United States, federal parental leave policy is unfunded. As a result, many new parents, particularly hourly workers, return to their jobs just weeks after the birth because they cannot afford not to. Not surprisingly, workplace policies that offer parents flexibility and leave time are crucial. However, Perry-Jenkins shows that the time parents spend at work also matters. Their day-to-day experiences on the job, such as relationships with supervisors and coworkers, job autonomy, and time pressures, have long-term consequences for parents' mental health, the quality of their parenting, and, ultimately, the health of their children.

An overdue look at an important segment of the parenting population, Work Matters proposes ways to reimagine low-wage work to sustain new families and the development of future generations.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Winner of the Silver Medal in Women / BIPOC in Business at the Axiom Business Book Awards, Work Matters has been praised for its compelling connection between the treatment of low-income parents at work and their performance as parents. Charter Works applauds Perry-Jenkins’ insightful and convincing analysis.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780691174693

Publisher: Princeton University Press

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 09 August 2022

Country: United States

Imprint: Princeton University Press

Illustration: 13 b/w illus.

Audience: General / adult, Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Width: 140.0mm

Height: 216.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 248

Collections

Career Development Education & Reference Health & Wellness Maureen Perry-Jenkins Non-Fiction Self-Help & Personal Development

About the Author

Maureen Perry-Jenkins is professor of psychology at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. www.instagram.com/mpj728

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