"I raised my kids on the bus": transit shift workers' coping strategies for parenting

Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare, Sept, 2002 by Blanche Grosswald

Formal Child Care Arrangements Most drivers were not able to rely entirely on family and friends for child care, and thus, had to place their children in formal day care or after-school programs. Quite a few expressed concern for the safety of their children while they were in formal child care, and many felt guilty about leaving children with nonrelatives. One father spoke for a number of drivers when he said:

   You're always worried when somebody else is in charge of your child.... If
   it's your wife, ... you just feel good, you relax, you accept whatever
   comes your way. Whereas, God forbid, if anything ever happened when
   somebody else is taking care of your kid, you have to live with that.

A father of three boys, whose wife worked days and whose children spent three hours a day in child care with a neighbor, felt bad about his children having non-parental care. Although he trusted the neighbor, and did not fear for the safety of his children he still commented:

   Well, the main reason I like to work nights is because I like to be with my
   kids in the daytime instead of [the] babysitter.... If you compare the
   care, my care is different from the babysitter.

Home Alone: Self-Care Parents from two-parent families did occasionally leave young children (under 12) alone, but not regularly. By contrast, single mothers were more likely to do so, experiencing limited options. One single mother said, "My babies raised themselves" of her two children aged 7 and 5 who stayed home alone while she worked. She felt both guilty and duped by her employer. She explained that, initially, as a new bus driver, she had prioritized work over family. By the time she came to believe she had been too "gung-ho" and naive about the importance of her job, it was already too late. Her children were grown and no longer needed her as they had previously.

Although child care is usually associated with youngsters, several parents voiced concerns about leaving older children alone too. After-school programs often have age limits (11 or 12), so these programs are not options for drivers with older children. One mother reported that her 11-year-old was afraid of being in the house alone after school. People expressed fears that their children would join gangs, drink alcohol, or be crime victims if left alone.

Expressions of Caring

Caring for children can take a variety of forms for any population of working parents. Ruddick (1998) discusses expressions of feelings as part of the work of care. Here I look at what forms these expressions took. Among bus drivers, the most evident expressions of care involved job timing, contact while at work, material gifts, job pride, and separation of work from family.

Job Timing One mother postponed taking her bus driver job because she felt that her children were too young for her to be away from them 14 hours a day when the job first became available to her. The population of bus drivers is considerably older than the median age of parents of young children. Only 18% of the sample were 35 years or younger. Half were between 36 and 49 years old. Thirty-two percent were 50 or older, matching the age range of the Muni workforce. There is, thus, a suggestion of an inherent incompatibility between the job and a family that includes young children.