Silicon Valley: Perks for Some Workers, Struggles for Parents

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Tech companies shower their employees with perks like dry cleaning, massages and haircuts. But there is one group for whom working at a tech company can be much more difficult than working elsewhere: parents. That Silicon Valley -- known for being on the forefront not just of technology but also of workplace policy -- creates so many difficulties for working parents highlights a vexing problem for the American economy. The United States is arguably struggling to adjust to the realities of modern family life more than any other affluent country.

The American workplace has always prized people who prioritize work over family, and European countries have long had more generous policies for working parents. But in the last two decades, that gap has widened significantly. Other developed countries have expanded benefits like paid parental leave and child care, while the United States has not. The absence of such policies here creates obvious advantages for companies, reducing costs and increasing production. But for workers -- most of whom have children, aging parents or both, and many of whom are single parents -- the downsides can be enormous, whether they work in high finance or hourly labor. Many workers today -- blue-collar and white-collar alike -- believe they must choose between career and family. Start-ups are unlikely to have parental policies because they are more focused on growing as quickly as possible. Many big tech companies try to ease the way for new parents, at least officially -- but that does not necessarily filter down to company culture. In some ways, an aging Silicon Valley is beginning to look more like the rest of corporate America, where most workers have families. The challenge is retaining the youthful optimism that they can do the impossible -- while also showing their employees that working and having families is realistic.


Silicon Valley: Perks for Some Workers, Struggles for Parents