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I've had a hybrid role for the past 4 years where I get unlimited sick days (well 14 really until fmla kicked in), 3 weeks of vacation, 3 personal days. I am also given the week after Xmas off. if my toddlers are sick I can work at home with them. Interviewing w fortune 500 that offers 15 pto days that have to use for sick days too.Strictly in office job 9-5 and dress bus.prof. These bad benefits? Outdated culture?I am a seasoned professional. Seems tough.
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12b6 always be tellin’ it like it is

Anyone from EYP…I’m applying to “Strategy & Transactions Working Capital Consultant/Senior”. I have the experience, six sigma, PMP etc stated in the description. How can I proactively position myself to earn the interview? I’m afraid I might get auto rejected because I have way more than 2 years experience, but I know industry experience is weighted different. Appreciate any help, insight, or anyone willing to chat. EY-Parthenon
Happy Diwali! What’s everyone making today?

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The answer is the simple one. People in your financial position just suck it up and remind themselves it’s a temporary expense until elementary school starts (if you aren’t planning for private school). People who can’t afford it have one parent stay home, or have grandparent help, or work part time with nanny help.
Dang! Thats awful
Everybody has to make their own choices based on ranking priorities. We wanted a big family (5 kids). To make it happen, only one of us works while the other stays home and takes care of, and home schools, the kids. That meant we had to choose not to live in or even very near a large city because costs are way too high. It also means we don't drive new cars or have big new house. For us, it has been completely worth it.
That's just it....you have to prioritize things. You want more kids.....its called sacrifice. At least for awhile.
Honestly my cost for one kid was probably close to 100k for nanny and preschool in my hcol the last two years before public school kicked in. Bananas. But needed the coverage.
What we’ve run into is the basic public school before & aftercare is 10K/kid. Then add in summer camps and school break coverage, 300-400/week per kid. Totals 28,000/year for two kids. We could save maybe 8K if we sent them to a sketchy charter school with cheaper before & aftercare. But, their class sizes would drama increase, and a much lower quality of education.
The school district used to contract with a group that only charged 7k/year. But they switched to the ymca. This is nothing special, just babysitting a big group of kids at school.
Try reading "The Two Income Trap" by Elizabeth Warren. It clearly describes what you and so many other families are economically facing in the current climate. You may dismiss her for political reasons, but as a former Harvard Economics Professor, she's more accurate in her observations and conclusions than many who are driving our economy today. The book is over 30 years old and was updated, but still relevent.
Our solution was to hire a nanny. It worked out to be less than daycare, and the kids were getting more personal attention. It can be a challenge to find the right nanny, but in the end we found someone that we and the kids thought was amazing. She also helped with light housework and did some of our dinner prep. We still keep in touch with her.
Well, at least you're allowed to work. Despite being over qualified for most of the jobs on here, I never get a call, never get an interview and that's despite many many CV workovers. Nobody is hiring older people.
Our kids are 5-1/2 and just started Kindergarten this school year. We did 5 years of twins in daycare! Everyone has to make the decision of one parent staying home, based on your salaries. For us, the daycare cost of about $28k in Rockford had to make sense for my wife's salary who makes less than me.
We also believed it was important for my wife to work and not lose those years of experience in the corporate world. So, we made it work. Definitely take advantage of all types of FSA's available, especially the daycare FSA, tax free accounts to pay for expenses.
Other than that, I would recommend following Dave Ramsey and his baby steps. It's all sacrifice where it is needed. Payoff debts to free up monthly income. Work side jobs along the way or I donated plasma which gave me another $400 per month if you go twice a week.
It can be done! Now we are on the other side of daycare in a free public school and wondering when we are going to book our next cruise. Keep your head up, it's tough for 5 years :)
One of you should realize it isn't a bad thing to actually raise your own children
I quit my job at Duke after I had two kids 3 years apart 13 1/2 years ago and then we had baby number four twenty months later. I became a stay at home mom for 10 years and then I took a lower paying job in the school system so I could have the summer off with my kids. My husband got sick about 3 years ago and I realized my income was not enough alone to provide for our family of 6, so I went back into the medical field 2 years ago. We survived but it was a lot of sacrifices and budgeting to make it through.
It's not like the cost are unknown. Its a choice you make. Be happy with one kid and more money or have two kids and struggle
This is a little extreme honestly. We will have a population issue if people continue to have smaller and smaller families. But also I can want to have more children but still want to provide financially for them so they are set up as well as I can set them up.
@Cheif engineer 1. Tell us more about all the fraud you referenced. Where is all the fraud currently being committed? Is there a link to a report or something that we could look at to be sure it's not happening in our localities?
This was us 10 years ago and honestly, we're probably still paying off the debt we took on to pay for daycare. The cost of daycare was equivalent to what I would have paid if my kids went to a local private high school and was more than what we paid in rent and then a mortgage. Some families switched to a nanny arrangement after the 2nd child, but that wasn't something we wanted to explore. The daycare teachers and the experiences my kids had from 3 mos. to 5 or 6 years old were worth the expense- even knowing the debt we took on to do it.
I honestly think parents should get a tax credit for the cost of daycare (more than the pittance the IRS allows now) and have a percentage of that paid back to the govt once the kids are in kindergarten.
Are you in Canada? Most provinces have $10/day child care now. With 15% tax, that's about $2990 per year.
They make a lot more money or they are in debt. We do not use child care.
It is better for your kids (especially babies for mom to stay home) for someone to stay home and might be cheaper:
Consider the lower earner's (or mother in case of a baby) take home pay hourly rate: after-tax pay divided by hours worked and commuting vs. child care + gas + extra car insurance (if you use a pay per miles driven plan) divided by same # of hours.
Consider the increased time that the at-home person has to complete housework and run errands.
Choose to be a Stay at Home mother, the work load actually decreases as do your expenses! The rewards are generational and you'll never regret it!!! Don't buy the lies...you do not need two incomes if your family and home have a hard working Manager...you :)
Cats instead of Kids