CBC Forum: What steps should be taken to make Parliament more family-friendly?
As a House of Commons committee looks at making the job of elected officials more family-friendly, Canada's MPs are considering several measures including ending Friday sittings in Parliament. What steps should be taken to make Parliament more family-friendly?
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Today's topic is, 'What steps should be taken to make Parliament more family-friendly?'
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Many MPs say the long hours and frequent travel of the job means they are away from their children more than with them, causing a strain on the entire family.
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There's been some talk of a shorter sitting week, or perhaps a staggered on-again, off-again schedule. Do you agree with that approach? Or perhaps some smaller changes? Or do you think it's all part of the job? Let us know.
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It's a job that is taxing on families.. but also something they aren't forced to do.
Easy answer, don't take the job if you don't want to have to sacrifice.
Interesting MP's are more concerned about themselves than say the 1000's of maritimers that have done two weeks on, two off in Alberta for years. -
Canadians have had to make tough choices. Moving families because there is no work. Working over-qualified for under paying jobs to stay with families.
It's a part of life. Not sure why the entitled few think it's such an easy fix for them by working less.
If they cut back their hours, they better cut back their pay. -
Can't believe they even have the nerve to suggest this after giving themselves a 20% raise in office expenses. How quickly they lose touch with reality. -
Nothing, they took a job knowing full well what it entails, no one in the private sector, no single parents, seniors forced to work later in life etc would get this gross farce of an entitlement. It not enough that MP's barely work 6 months a year, get entire summers off, extra long christmas breaks etc. If the are having trouble reconciling family and work well maybe they should quit and have all the family time in the world. As for regular working joes i think i speak for them when i say get bent Government whiners.
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Interesting. I imagined that as elected MPs, they might place their service to Canada first since, theoretically, they sought election in order to ... serve their country.
Of course families are important; no question at all about that - just ask any soldier ... who gets none of the MPs' benefits - pay, pension, holidays ... ad nauseam. -
Leave it to a Liberal government to try and justify a 20% raise and a 20% cut in work at the same time when Canadians are working longer and harder just to get by. This just shows how completely out of touch Trust Fund Trudeau really is, zero concept of work or money. I wonder what kind of "family work balance" his 2 taxpayer funded nannys get.
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Sorry, but voting should be made in the House of Commons Chamber - in person. It should not be done over Skype. Doing it over Skype would allow members who are not even present in Ottawa to cast a vote.
Now, the voting process in the House of Commons Chamber where every member has to stand to cast their vote is time consuming and a process could be put into place allowing them to cast their votes electronically while sitting at their desks in the Chamber with buttons to vote aye, nay or present and that has the necessary security measures in place (finger print readers, perhaps), to prevent one member casting a vote for an absent member. -
In this day and age, there is no real reason why people need to be physically in the same place in order to get work done. Is there any reason that many of these meetings can't be conducted by means of video teleconference?
I completely support the much stronger emphasis on family. But, if it's going to create problems with attending meetings, etc., why aren't they able to be there virtually? -
take very small steps ----this is not just about families--- mp families--- it is about optics ----feather bedding rankles----- so move slowly
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Suck it up buttercup. You knew the hours of work full well before you ran for your lofty office.
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Fire them all let them have all the family time they want.
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So when do the rest of Canadians go to a four day work week and get full benefits and get a healthy pension? These folks ran for office. They were not conscripted. I find this rather obscene. Absolutely unbelievable.
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Since there's an early consensus that changing the number of days Parliament sits would be unacceptable, what sort of changes do you think would be acceptable, if any?
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1. For those who think that the 20% increase in office budgets is money in an MPs pocket, that is incorrect. The CBC has been characterizing this as a raise - even on Newsworld - that gives the impression that this is adding to the income of the MP. It is not.
Budgets for offices have not risen in over five years and that hampers the ability of MPs to attract talent to staff their offices because of the limitations to pay staff a decent salary. . -
With the amount of travel,which is work I think 4 days a week is sufficent. -
Maybe a 20% cut in hours means a 20% cut in pay but no now we have 20% increase to office budgets instead -
What's next- the military asking for a four day war week?
These Liberals are SOFT. -
Canadian Class System
Politicians/Ultra Rich
Public Sector Workers
Private Sector Workers
Poor -
For those of you slagging the Liberals on this issue perhaps you missed that it is ALL MP's having an issue with not having enough time with their families. -
Why does parliament suddenly have to be "Family Friendly"? Voters elected these MPs to serve Canada. They knew before being elected that the position is demanding so why now all of a sudden do they want to shorten the work week? Canadians will not and should not accept this. We did not vote for this.
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Whether you're for or against any changes, please say why. Comments such as "yes!" "no! "of course!" or "All politicians are crooks!" don't add much. Let's have a discussion.
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"What steps should be taken to make Parliament more family-friendly?"
Absolutely none! It's not supposed to be family friendly. It is the center of governance for the country.
If they cant work the full amount of time they shouldn't be there. And for 6 figures and a golden plated pension no less! Certainly no 4 day work weeks thats fo r sur! -
Next up for discussion.... how we can make aircraft cockpits and nuclear power stations more friendly for families.
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We all have to balance work and family often in difficult and demanding situations. As a taxpayer I will not support a four day work week for our already over payed politicians. You find a way to make it work without adding to the Canadian debt.
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$167,000 a year for MPs - can they not afford a baby-sitter or day-care? How about making minimum wage work more "family-friendly". Sorry if I find it hard to sympathize with the most over-paid, spoilt workers in this country.
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Well, the House already accommodates members from out of town by not holding votes on Fridays, so members need not be present in the House on Fridays outside of having a number of MPs present to keep a Quorum. In fact, they don't even hold votes on Thursday nights anymore because most out-of-town MPs leave for their flights back home.
Scheduling votes after Question Period (which they have done several times this year) rather than in the evening allows members to be home for dinner with their families (if the family lives in Ottawa).
But to suggest that the House of Commons Chamber is chock full of MPs at any time outside of Members' Statements and Question Period is a mistake. There may be a quorum (which is 20 MPs, I believe) but the rest are off to committee meetings, meetings in their office or out shopping (we don't really know).
As for the "working for six months of the year", MPs work all year, but not all of their work is in Ottawa. Sometimes committees travel and members have work to do in their constituencies such as meetings with their constituents.
I know some MPs complain about the travel, but theirs is not the only occupation that has to travel. All sorts of occupations travel - it is part of the job. So I don't really have any sympathy for MPs who have taken a job that requires travel. It was their decision. I have a job that requires constant travel - I am away from home about 45 weeks a year with at least one round-trip flight each of those weeks. You learn to live with it and make the best use of your time when you are on a plane - sometimes for three or more hours. -
When a Canadian decides to run for election as an MP - to *serve* Canada - they make a conscious choice and a commitment. I would not dismiss being an MP as "an easy job" because I don't believe that it should be - providing the MP does what they have been elected to do.
What I cannot comprehend is why MPs, who often serve for a relatively brief period of time, are awarded the level of benefits that they are. How does this compare with the benefits we Canadians award those other people who choose to serve Canada: our Armed Froces? -
What I would push for is less nonsense and more earnest work. Get rid of QP... a charade of pre-scripted talking points. Get rid of the formalities... We hardly need to call them Honourable Members... Use technology... Ban people from meetings if they have nothing to say. Restrict committee member talking times... Get rid of the paper... who is going to read all that crap??
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I'm sure the four day work week will be well appreciated by the homeless and destitute who live 23/7 on the streets or minimum wage jobs to make ends met. Politicians with no grasp what the everyday Canadian deals with on a daily basis.
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Yukon Liberal MP Larry Bagnell flies more then 20 hours a week. Here is a suggestion. Bring your young family to Ottawa. Get your wife to meet you with the kids halfway for a few days of just family time. It is quality not quantity that matters.
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If the parliamentary time is not reduced (i.e. same number of sitting hours compressed into four days rather than five) then there shouldn't be a problem.
Many occupations work reduced days for more house in a day. Firefighters, for the most part, work two days and then have the rest of the week off. They work for 48 hours in which they get paid to sleep, although that sleep might be interrupted.
Police officers are working more 12 hour shifts to have more days off during the week. Nurses do the same. Industry, particularly petrochemical industries, work 12 hours shifts rather than the 8 hour shifts.
It is a matter of reworking the work hours - same number of hours, but worked differently.
While I know that a lot of jobs don't have that option simply because of the nature of the job - service jobs for instance, but even that is changing. Even hotels are going to 12-hour shifts for certain jobs because it allows them to attract and keep good employees. -
We should treat parilment like the Bilderberg meetings. That way everything would be all preset to achieve a certain agenda. Look up the Bilderberg group people, decide for yourself.
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Firstly; all MP's understand the commitment to the service of Canada before they are elected; secondly; they are paid way above the average wage in Canada; and thirdly; service to the country is not a job or a career it is a "service" Surely there are sufficient perks such as increasing their personal budgets to over $300,000 that makes up for lost family time
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I must admit i could not read the whole article. I teared up.I`m sure there are sacrifices in public life but that is the nature of the beast.
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You sign up for the job, that's what you get. Why should it be more family friendly? It's Parliament, not a childcare. Maybe have sessions at Chuck E Cheese's. The Organ Grinder, perhaps.
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How about they don't spend time fundraising for their party once elected?
The lifetime benefits received for a few years of work are gigantic. Telling us their job is inconvenient is a disgrace. -
Enough already. You understood the job when you ran in the election. It's in Ottawa, and your family is back in your home district.
Do like me and get on Skype and talk with them. I like 800 km away from them. Getting home every week is a not fiscally possible. -
Oh come on. We elected these people to run the country. We're up to our necks in deficits and unemployment and this is what our MP's are concerned about? They just don't seem to get it. After four months of this government I've already had enough.
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The committee members are Liberal Larry Bagnell (chair), Conservative Blake Richards (vice-chair) and NDP David Christopherson (vice-chair), along with five further Liberal members and two Conservative members.
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Any professional position requires more than 9 to 5 hours. That's why the pay and benefits are better. In addition this whole story leaves out how many days of the year they are actually sitting in the house of Commons .