A New York Times article, “The 24/7 Work Culture’s Toll on Families and Gender Equality,” paints a sobering picture of the lives many of our church volunteers lead outside of church. Some excerpts and my thoughts.

• “The pressure of a round-the-clock work culture . . . is particularly acute in highly skilled, highly paid professional services jobs like law, finance, consulting and accounting.”  How does the 24/7 work culture affect the availability of church volunteers? How can we adapt what we ask/expect of volunteers to adjust to this reality?
• “For low-wage earners, the problem is not too many hours but too few. Their schedules are often too unpredictable, and their wages have been rising only modestly. For many workers, a lack of parental leave or child care can create additional strains.” How do part-time jobs, unpredictable wages and low incomes affect the availability of church volunteers? How can we adapt what we ask/expect of volunteers to adjust to this reality?
• “‘. . . the work-family balance problem is recognized as primarily a woman’s problem . . .'” Women generally outnumber men among church volunteers. How do we help women in our churches with this struggle, and not add to it?