Women in the workplace?

[steve-in-kville]

Beings we have a pretty diverse crowd here, I thought this would make for an interesting topic to discuss. Some groups have written statements on the young ladies as well as married women working away from the home. Others have unwritten guidelines. So where do we draw the line? Are there certain jobs/positions our sisters should avoid? Should they have the same opportunities as a man?

For sure a hot topic in todays culture!

[steve-in-kville]

I'll start.

My workplace employs women in just about every category possible (I work in a warehouse). We have females picking orders along side men. We've had female truck drivers. I remain neutral on that, as I have really no opinion.

Where I do draw issue is when women are put in management positions, especially when their boss is a man. That just causes all manner of issues, as I've seen happen over and over in various companies.

My wife worked at a dry goods store until we were married, and I wanted her to stay home. I didn't want to get in the groove of relying on a second income to make ends meet. The first year we were married, she did do some seasonal work in greenhouse, but that was until children came along. Once the family is older, I wouldn't mind if she wants to work part-time somewhere, but that's up to her.

[JimFoxvog]

Yes, I believe women should have the same opportunities in the workplace as men.

I also believe it is better for preschool children to be home with a parent. A father or a mother can do an excellent job in parenting.

[MaxPC]

Beings we have a pretty diverse crowd here, I thought this would make for an interesting topic to discuss. Some groups have written statements on the young ladies as well as married women working away from the home. Others have unwritten guidelines. So where do we draw the line? Are there certain jobs/positions our sisters should avoid? Should they have the same opportunities as a man?

For sure a hot topic in todays culture!

Personally I worry about some of the "men" in the workplace too

Within the context of personal beliefs, my wife and I always discuss these things. She has skills and talents that I do not. Likewise, I have skills and talents that she does not. With that said, I will commit to one all-encompassing phrase: "It depends".

It depends on the boss, the environment of the workplace, the attitudes of the employees and employers. While she did stay at home for the raising of the children, after they had fled the nest she could have gone back to work as a teacher but chose not to do so. Her reasons had to do with the working environment in the public schools and their lack of tolerance for active believers in God in this day and age.

I certainly think that one's chosen faith community is to be considered as well. Does the community have ordnungs or rules for addressing this topic?

[Josh]

Yes, I believe women should have the same opportunities in the workplace as men.

I also believe it is better for preschool children to be home with a parent. A father or a mother can do an excellent job in parenting.

Would you extend this to, say, doing cement footers or flat work?

Do you think men and women are identical with no differences at all in ability or aptitude?

[Josh]

Beings we have a pretty diverse crowd here, I thought this would make for an interesting topic to discuss. Some groups have written statements on the young ladies as well as married women working away from the home. Others have unwritten guidelines. So where do we draw the line? Are there certain jobs/positions our sisters should avoid? Should they have the same opportunities as a man?

For sure a hot topic in todays culture!

We need look no further than the world which encourages women to have careers and work outside the home and go to college.

If you want a cesspool of fornication, children without fathers, divorce, adultery, unemployed men, young men who are unmotivated to work, and women with all kinds of emotional disturbances and stress related illness, then by all keep doing things the world’s way.

[steve-in-kville]

Personally I worry about some of the "men" in the workplace too

One can be as much of a threat (predator?) as the other. I've worked with women who tried to "score" with about any man with two legs and a pulse. After that incident, my workplace adopted a very aggressive policy on workplace romances.

[steve-in-kville]

We need look no further than the world which encourages women to have careers and work outside the home and go to college.

If you want a cesspool of fornication, children without fathers, divorce, adultery, unemployed men, young men who are unmotivated to work, and women with all kinds of emotional disturbances and stress related illness, then by all keep doing things the world’s way.

I envy fathers who can manage to work from home, either a home based business or farming. I would love to have a produce farm... but our area is hard on farmers at the moment.

Maybe I should grow hemp for its oil

[temporal1]

Yes, I believe women should have the same opportunities in the workplace as men.
I also believe it is better for preschool children to be home with a parent. A father or a mother can do an excellent job in parenting.

Would you extend this to, say, doing cement footers or flat work?
Do you think men and women are identical with no differences at all in ability or aptitude?

When i was young, many, or most women were at home with their families; overall, families were bigger, and closer, churches were much more central, altho my close family did not attend regularly, my extended family attended and were active in somewhat different Protestant churches. i.e., there were “networks” that supported stay-at-home mothers, and families. it was “normal,” not in question.

There were tragic accounts of how life was in the (evil) Soviet Union, about women working in every description male role, from ditch-diggers to medical doctors, their children were placed in government institutions.

For a child like me, humble life, but with our dear mother home with us, this painted a gruesome picture, many felt great empathy for families in the USSR, where so many men died in wars, women were forced to leave their homes. No choice. It was survival.

Later, when we had a new family, money was very tight, “naturally,” questions of working outside the home came up. The responsible thing, right? .. Thankfully, when we counted the costs of me working outside the home, there was no gain! For the most part, i did not work outside the home, AND, i was grateful the TEMPTATION of gainful employment was not part of the mix. i’ll never know, but, i feared, if money tempted, we might have chosen money over family.

Being at home, i was able to learn important skills of thrift and planning, plus, i often cared for 1-3 other children with ours, that helped with income. occasionally, i did some other types of work at home, like typing theses, and other university student papers. women used to “take in ironing,” and other chores like that.

i do not think there is any doubt, when women work outside their homes, TIME becomes an issue, then, additional money is spent for CONVENIENCE, and, GUILT. (imho) women/parents who stay at home with their children do less indulging of their children, less buying of material objects to “make up for” time away.

the costs of working outside the home go well beyond added clothing, transportation, child care.
for us, tho, those 3 costs were sufficient to allow me to stay home.
and, i was deeply grateful this was the case.

for these reasons, i am not for “equal pay,”
altho, i certainly understand how “simple” the concept APPEARS on surface. it totally messes up the extensive culture behind women at home with their families.
Do we have to be so superficial?!

on the other hand, i’m NOT for forcing women to stay home by government mandate! - or, government coercion. some women do not belong in their homes, some are detrimental to children.

in my mind, there is a vast difference in freely allowing exceptions, and gov mandate.
thing is, gov mandates INTERFERE with the free culture, by encouraging/rewarding certain behaviors and choices. yes, you may have a “choice,” but, in real life, that choice may be so heavily weighted one way or another, there really isn’t much of a choice, after all.

Today .. i’m stunned we have morphed into a culture wherein MANY are VOTING for a world that mimics gruesome 1950’s Soviet Union.

Not forced by war losses, CHOSEN by women and men who sincerely believe women belong in the overall workplace, babies+children in gov institutions, or in care subsidized by government (very little difference there). Once the economy is so changed that outside income of mothers is thought of as part of required basic income, choice-is-gone!

Free/affordable childcare is a serious matter.
This represents more pressure for women to leave their families. It sounds so benevolent!
Again, do we have to be so superficial?

IF people are serious when they say, “raising a child is THE MOST VALUABLE WORK,”
THEN, why not authentically respect that work and support it,
rather than reducing it to “free or cheap” so that mothers walk away from it?

[temporal1]

Personally I worry about some of the "men" in the workplace too

One can be as much of a threat (predator?) as the other. I've worked with women who tried to "score" with about any man with two legs and a pulse. After that incident, my workplace adopted a very aggressive policy on workplace romances.

women can be predators of women, too. this happened to me. not often, but more than once.
i have a friend who was seduced by a woman, years later, they are still together.

the first time, i was so naive, my (male) boss had to take me aside to warn me. i was in disbelief, but, he was right. his warning helped me avoid walking into a situation that would have been disastrous.
(i worked part-time outside the home once our children were in high school.)

older children, teens, need mothers at home just as much as toddlers.
their needs are much different! but just as important.

wife, mother, “keeper of the home,” is valuable, respectable, honorable work.
our culture fails to adequately recognize it.