Work and parenthood can be a difficult balancing act especially when you throw in a global pandemic that’s seen schools closed and many becoming part-time teachers.
As today is the United Nations’ Global Day of Parents, we caught up with a few of our colleagues to find out how they’re coping with parenting in a pandemic.
Miguel Sanchez Guijarro - HSEQ Manager Iberia-Latam, Keller Cimentaciones (Madrid, Spain)
Before the pandemic I used to travel a lot; now I can spend more time with my family and be part of their daily routine. We’ve tried to shelter the children from the situation as much as possible – we think it’s best for their minds when so much of the information coming from outside is not positive for them. When I’m at home I try to help my kids with their homeschooling, but I’m terrible at it!
Parenting in a pandemic in three words? Intense, familiar, different.
Kevin Wikar - Area Manager, Keller North America (Annapolis, Maryland)
For Keller, we’ve continued to see high demand in public and private infrastructure projects, and it’s been very difficult given the situation to meet that demand. I’ve recently started to travel a little bit further afield. We’re taking every precaution on these visits, but obviously, it’s a concern. But as I say to my friends when they ask me why I’m going out to work, these are essential projects that keep our society functioning.
Lea Cochrane - Marketing Manager, Keller Australia (Victoria)
Homeschooling has been challenging. We’ve adapted our house so we all have a place to sit and work, but we’re in a small area. Plus you have to set up and use a range of online source materials from three different schools while trying to remember who has meetings today, at what time, and using which platform!
Fortunately, I work for an amazing, understanding company with awesome people and I’ve only ever experienced considerate working conditions as a parent.
Parenting in a pandemic in three words? Adaptable, optimistic, creative.
Jessica Church - HR Manager, Keller North America (Baltimore)
My husband and I work full-time, so at the beginning of our week we talk about our schedule, then every day each of us gets half the day in the home office, uninterrupted. The other half is still working, handling calls, emails, etc, plus teaching kindergarten, feeding them countless meals, and taking them out on our street to play.
Pre-Covid I used to say there weren’t enough minutes in the day and I’m missing time with my boys. So despite the challenges, the situation has given me time to be with them during this short childhood period. For a working mom, this is something I never thought I’d get.
Parenting in a pandemic in three words? So. Very. Hard.
Rosalind Leong - PA to Directors, Keller ASEAN (Singapore)
The main challenge has been the endless household chores. With children around, the house keeps getting messy, so we’re constantly cleaning up after them. Also, Singapore has really hot and humid weather, which means multiple changes of clothes daily, so the laundry is really adding up! I’m training them to wash dishes, but they’re often still dirty!
Balancing work and parenting hasn’t been too bad. On the bright side, I feel that we spend more time together. On the days that I can’t finish my work during the day, I just work later at night. The fact I don’t have to rush home after work to pick them up means it’s more flexible.
Parenting in a pandemic in three words? Stay home safe.