Tag: smh.com.au

Categories
News

No Rorters Here

I must say that all this talk of double dipping and new mums supposedly rorting the system is hypocritical if you ask me.

New Parents - Hopefully will be still able to claim the parental leave.
New Parents – Hopefully will be still able to claim the parental leave.

The government voted for this paid parental scheme. It was structured with part coming from the employer and part from the government. Government minister wives have even made use of this scheme. It was all above board and if you were entitled to the parental leave payments why not let this help you if you are a new parent. It all helps.

Why is it that we are now having conversations about who works and who doesn’t. I for one would like to challenge any person to say that a mum that is a stay at home parent does not work. The only difference is that they are not in paid employment. This mother might be racing everywhere and going above and beyond for her family but this is not listed as work, due to no payment for said tasks.

Working mothers do it tough too. They drop their kids off at care or have family to come and help. Without care these mums would not be able to work and to contribute to society, their household and progress their careers.

It does not matter if you are in paid work or not. Looking after kids, family and a house is a big job as well. Doing this with a full time job is hard too. It is all a balancing act. No one is better or worse, it is just different.

It now seems like mothers are under attack. I know that is not actually true but that is the way it appears. Joe Hockey was asked if “Double Dipping” was fraud and he eventually said yes. Now he is back peddling. So I suppose in his mind all women/men that took advantage of this paid parental scheme, which is legal and was voted in by him and the current government are breaking the law.

 

“Social Services Minister Scott Morrison has said accessing both schemes is “double dipping” and “a rort”.

“Asked last week if it was “fraud” for mothers to collect both schemes, Mr Hockey said: “Well, it is”, but stopped short of using the word himself.”

 

You do have to qualify first to be eligible to get the paid parental leave.  Below is what you need to be eligible to claim. Taken from the Human Resources Government website:

  • be the primary carer of a newborn or recently adopted child
  • meet the Paid Parental Leave work test
  • meet the Paid Parental Leave income test
  • be on leave or not working from the time you become your child’s primary carer until the end of your Paid Parental Leave period

Just in case you are worried that paid parental leave might not be available for you, there is a note on the website that says:

“The current Paid Parental Leave scheme has not changed. It will continue to be available to eligible customers.”

Let’s just hope that it does not get changed at all, or very little if at all.

What are your thoughts? The government is now claiming that it is the parents fault for taking advantage of a legal scheme to help them spend more time with their new baby.

 

If there is a way for new parents to spend more time with their new addition why not take that up and give yourself more time to bond, and get to know your new little baby. It could be a mother or father that wishes to do this, and does not always have to be the mum that is claiming the paid parental leave.

Are you a new parent? Have you been lucky enough to get the paid parental leave? When I went on maternity leave with the twins I did not have this option and plus I was on a contract.

If paid parental leave was available when I had the twins and I was in full time employment I would have taken advantage, as it would have given us help when we really needed it. Caring for two new little people and not earning a wage was a shock to the system.

Let us know how this talk of double dipping is affecting you. What are your thoughts of all the back flipping?

 

Categories
3 years and beyond

Costs of childcare

I don’t know about you but it is expensive to put kids into care.  Having two kids at once does make it more expensive, you have to double everything. In the news today there was a lady saying that she pays over $100 a day for child care (I would say for the cost she is in the city), I am assuming that is for one child. I would say that would need to be doubled for two kids.

Her theory of going back to work is a good one; she is trying to keep current in her chosen field. The more years you are out of the workforce the harder it is to get the next job.  I do agree with her, although I don’t want to go through all the stress and headache of putting kids into care to do a job that I do love, to not earn any money for it. With the rate of say $100 per day for one child it would not be a viable choice for me at all.

Here are some articles about childcare:

I know child care workers are underpaid and not appreciated enough. My girls bloomed with the two years they went to child care; however we could only manage to send them for one day a week. This one day cost us nearly $100 for just the day for both the girls. I think the workers need to get paid more; however I don’t see how this increase won’t flow onto parents.  The issue I have with child care and parents especially mothers returning to the workforce is the cost and the issues around it. The government is losing out on a great number of skilled workers who are in the same boat as myself, would like to do a part time role or say part time in the office and the rest from home. However due to non-flexible arrangements, no family support, high child care costs, and probably other things I have not listed, working is out of the question while kids are young.

Is it practical for you to go back to work?  I for one would love the change and chance to shine again in the corporate world; however it is not possible for the major reason of childcare costs, family support, and also the fact that I would like to stay home until the kids are at least at school. Even when they are at school, as the primary care giver you only have the window of school hours barring any sickness, and of course you have to drop tools when school holidays roll around.

Now the kids are in pre-school that is a cost and it is as stated times two, adding child care into the mix is not possible for us at the moment. I for one don’t understand how women and some fathers do it.  How do you work for the sole purpose of paying the child care centre? What do you do if the money you make is not enough for the bills for the centre? How does factoring in the travel , clothes, food and all the extras for the job help with the fact that child care costs are deducted from your salary?  If I got a job in the city, I would have to hire a nanny or carer to mind kids before school and after, to drop and pick up from school and to also to wait until I got home after work. This would add to our costs, especially with pre-school and commuting to the city.

I do think it is great women are doing work as well, and would like to know how you do it all.  I find it difficult with two kids and not working in a paid job.  Tonight, on the news there was some talk that the government  will help with the costs for child care workers, I do agree this would help, although if and when it will happen is another thing entirely. It is sad that we cannot pay them more and have reasonable fees that will allow parents to go to work and to have kids in care. Send in your comments on how you manage to find the cash for child care and manage with a part time/full time job.

Let us know your thoughts. Why not continue the discussion on our Facebook and Twitter pages.

 

Categories
3 years and beyond Pre-School

First day at Pre-School

Julia and Lillian - First Day of Pre-School
Julia and Lillian - First Day of Pre-School

The first day at pre-school went really well, although the girls were  bit shy when we got there, hearing about the slippery dip made the girls skip and run out to play without a thought to us.  We then made our leave quickly.  I was a bit sad but also happy that they are at this stage to go to school to learn more. I am also to even happier to getting some time off without the kids, it is a god sent.

This morning it was blue skies, sun and wonderful summer heat. This nice weather was a false alarm and was about to change to our big surprise. We ended up having a huge thunder storm that drenched us in so much water and hail. It was just so intense. The storm lasted over an hour and it seemed to be getting heavier and harder throughout the storm. James was home as he wanted to be here for the girls first day of pre-school was helping me run around the house to see if we were really water tight, and all was o.k. We seemed o.k, but we just watched in amazement at how the hail was failing and how quickly the water was flowing down the street and our driveway.

People here have put out their junk for council clean up and a chair opposite was floating down the street. We cringed as we both thought that it was going to slide into on coming traffic. This was not something we could witness, however it was what we imagined might happen. Also would the driver or the onlooker think, where did the person of the chair go?

Just to give you an idea of how intense the storm was, here are some articles of what happened today. The sports centre in Katoomba has had roof damage and water damage, other stores and houses have damage as well, “Patrons evacuated after roof collapse“, “Thunderstorms hit Blue Mountains“,  and “Blue Mountains lashed by heavy hail“.

I was thinking of how the girls were doing all day, and also thinking of what I could get done in the time I had to myself. I must say. Not much got done. I tidied the kitchen but now it is a mess again, so will do it again tomorrow. I managed to put fresh sheets on all beds, so that is a good thing and nice. However there are a lot more things to do. The plan is to get the place in order to allow myself to do what I want to do with the days the girls are at pre-school. This running around like a mad woman all days that I have off is not going to happen this year. I promise myself I will try and get organised to get things done. I know easier said than done. It will get better once I get some time to get rooms done and sorted. This way it will feel like things are actually happening and there is actual action. Although I do, do things, after cleaning, tidying, playing with kids and then looking at the house, you think it is in the same or worse state than before. I am sure you have all been there.

Daddy's necklace by Lillian
Daddy's necklace by Lillian

Oh well, after the storm and the darkness went more sunshine came out. Cruel weather, just after I had taken all the clothes off the line, yet again. This change was most welcome as we had to go and collect the girls. We made it and were in fact early, which was nice. We waited with the other parents for the doors to open at the end of class. Once the doors opened, the girls saw daddy and I waiting for them. They yelled,”Daddy” and raced over to hug him. He was then told by Lillian that she had made a necklace for him and he must wear it. She was trying to find it in the cardboard folder that had her name on it. All the kids have one and they are stored at the front of the school so that parents can see what the child has been doing and take artwork home but leave the folder at the school. I opened the folder to find that the teacher had put the necklace in her folder. Julia told me that she did not make one. Lillian then put it on daddy. He wore it for the rest of the day.

The girls told us that they painted, played on the slippery dip and slid down on their bellies, met a girl called Mia, and had a great day, and of course Lillian made daddy a necklace, it is a pasta necklace with the end being a pasta whistle. All very clever, and all her design she told me.

Both girls are looking forward to going back tomorrow and I am pleased that they had such a great time and want to go back. Now tomorrow will be action day for me and so will Wednesday. At least it will be well spent organising. I did want to go to aqua aerobics on Wednesday but that is at the aquatic centre that has roof damage from today’s storm, so I guess that is off limits until fixed.  Now off to organise the girls lunch boxes for tomorrow.

How do you manage the time when you child is in care/school do you run around like a mad person trying to get all things done? Is it something that you cherish and the hell with housework? Do you make a comprise and do one room and then give yourself a break? Any ideas or techniques please send my way. This way we can all learn and help each other.