Caregiving Is Real Work — Let’s Treat It That Way | The Way We Work, a TED series

Every day, people around the world spend 16 billion hours

翻译人员: J Zhong 校对人员: Yanyan Hong

每天，全世界无偿完成的照护工作

on unpaid care work --

高达 160 亿小时——

cooking for their families, cleaning up after them,

例如为家人做饭、收拾碗盘，

caring for children and older relatives

照顾小孩和年长的亲戚

and all the other routine household tasks.

以及其他日常家务。

These activities are happening all day, at every hour, in every country

这些事务每天、每小时、 在每个国家

around the world.

都在发生。

But because many don't get paid for this work,

然而，由于这些工作大多是无偿的，

most of us take it for granted.

我们经常视其为理所当然。

[The Way We Work]

[ 我们的工作方式 ]

Care work is a catch-all term for all the tasks and chores

“照护工作”是一个万能术语， 包含所有为了服务他人

that are done in service of other people.

而做的杂务和家务。

Some care work is paid, like medicine, nursing or being a nanny,

有些照护工作是有偿的， 像是医学、护理或保姆工作，

but a tremendous amount is done for free.

但绝大多数是无偿的。

And this unpaid care work is overwhelmingly done by women.

而且这些无偿工作 绝大部分是女性完成的。

There have been so many women in my own life

我自己就见过许多女性

who provided both paid and unpaid care work.

做或有偿或无偿的照护工作。

My mother and my grandmother before her.

例如我的母亲和外祖母。

Eswari, who was nursing my grandmother in her final years.

在我外祖母临终时照顾她的 爱思瓦里（Eswari）。

Patricia, who cares for my children when I travel for work.

在我旅行时替我照顾孩子的 帕特里夏（Patricia）。

And I've been an unpaid caregiver, too,

我也做过无偿的照护工作，

caring for my immediate family,

我不仅照顾我的直系亲属，

but also spending several months caring for ailing friends, their children

也花了几个月照顾 我生病的朋友、他们的孩子，

and my dad in his last days.

我父亲临终前我也在照顾他。

I've come to realize that unpaid care work

我便意识到是无偿的照护工作

makes all other work possible.

使其他工作得以完成。

During the COVID pandemic,

在新冠疫情期间，

with the closure of schools and the strain on the health care system,

学校关闭、医疗系统压力剧增，

the amount of time spent on unpaid care and domestic work doubled

在职的父母 花在无偿照护工作和家务上的时间

for working parents.

翻了一倍。

This has been a disaster for women around the world.

全世界的女性都遭殃了。

Compounding the stress

压力骤增，

and pushing millions out of the paid labor market altogether.

几百万女性因此失业，

It set the clock back on progress by decades.

让几十年的进步付诸东流。

But at the same time,

但同时，

the pandemic also made care work visible.

疫情也让人们注意到了照护工作。

It showed up in the background of our Zoom calls

我们在开 Zoom 会议时 背景里有人在做家务，

and in our need to limit overtime.

为了照顾家里， 我们也不再能无止境地加班。

And so many workplaces were able to integrate

许多工作环境做出了改变，

and even celebrate this new reality.

甚至非常欢迎这种新现象。

Right now, we have an incredible opportunity

现在，我们有一个大好机会

to recognize the care work in our lives, reframe it for ourselves

去认识我们生活中的照护工作， 以自己的角度去重新解释它们，

and build workplaces that are much more accommodating of it.

并建设对照护工作更包容的工作环境。

And here's where we can start.

我们可以从以下方面入手。

If you are someone providing care,

如果你是照护提供者，

the biggest thing you can do is name it for yourself and for others.

最重要的就是指出这些工作的存在， 利人利己。

Care work.

照护工作。

It's not a distraction

对于全职工作而言

if you're fitting it around paid employment.

不是一种干扰。

You're not "taking a break"

对于休假照顾他人者

if you’re on sabbatical caring for someone in need.

不是一种休息。

This is real, critical work

它是真实的、重要的工作，

that can be exhausting, frustrating and even boring.

累人、烦人，甚至很无聊。

Give yourself permission to feel all of the emotions you'd feel

如果你有偿做照护工作，

if the work came accompanied by a paycheck.

也要允许自己感受这些情绪。

And when you're talking to your manager about it,

当你和上级沟通这些问题的时候

don't feel like you need to apologize.

千万不要感到抱歉。

Remember, this is a fact of life,

记住，照护工作就是如此，

and be as explicit as you can about your needs.

同时尽可能详细地描述你的需求。

Do you need three months at home

你是需要居家休息三个月

or do you need Tuesday mornings for a standing appointment?

还是需要定期去做心理咨询？

As a caregiver,

对于照护者来说，

it's also important to recognize the skills that you gain doing this work.

同样重要的是认识到 你从这些工作中获取到的技能。

There is so much involved with giving care --

照护工作涉及到许多技能——

handling transport, logistics,

管理行程，后勤，

interpreting medical charts, managing financials.

解读医疗图表，管理财务。

These are valuable skills

这些技能很有价值，

that are relevant to all kinds of contexts.

适用于各种场合。

So if you have a job, frame caregiving to your colleagues that way.

如果你有全职工作， 就这样向同事们解释照护工作。

And if you’re looking for paid work,

而如果你在找工作，

don't treat it as a big empty gap in your life.

不要把照顾别人看作浪费了生命。

Put it on your CV and outline the skills that you've gained from it.

将其写在简历上 并列出你从中习得的技能。

Skills like multitasking,

像是处理多重任务，

project management or communication.

项目管理或沟通的技能。

But of course it's not just on individuals

当然，除了个人的努力外，

to change how the wider world thinks about care work.

要改变大众对照顾工作的看法 还需其他方面参与。

We need systemic change from employers, too.

我们还需要雇主 做出系统性的改变。

The biggest thing that employers can do

其中最重要的是

is to make space for employees to talk about care work

营造一个让员工能够 谈论照护工作的环境，

without being penalized or seen as less focused or dedicated.

且他们不会受惩罚 或被认为不够努力、专注。

Caregiving should be a topic that's brought up early

在新员工入职的时候

when new employees first start their training.

就及早和他们 讨论照护工作的话题。

Workplaces should track and understand the kind of care work

公司应该积极关注和了解 以下几方面：

employees are responsible for

员工负责什么照护工作，

and what kind of policy changes are needed to make their lives better

有什么相关政策能 便利他们的生活、

and more productive.

让他们工作效率更高。

And employers should make sure that caregivers aren't passed over

雇主应保证照护者的 家庭照护职责

for key projects or promotions just because of their duties at home.

不会影响他们参与关键项目 以及晋升。

Caregiving is such a fundamental aspect of being human,

照护行为是为人的基础，

and yet it's so artificially cleansed from our work lives.

被人为地从工作环境之中抹除了。

Instead of treating it like a secret,

工作环境不应该对此避而不谈，

workplaces can bring it out into the open.

而是应该开诚公布地讨论。

And of course, workplaces need to offer flexibility

当然，工作环境也应灵活地适应

to accommodate the lived realities of caregivers.

照护者面临的各种问题。

For employees who are parents,

对于为人父母的雇员，

in addition to parental leave,

除了育儿假之外，

this means allowing them time off when kids are sick or home from school.

应允许他们在孩子生病 或离校返家时请假。

It means letting them establish dark zones in their calendar

也就意味着在孩子需要接送、 洗澡和睡觉的时间段

around school drop offs, bath time, bedtime rituals

不要给他们安排工作，

and respecting those boundaries.

也不应打扰他们。

It means offering remote work options.

这也意味着应该 给他们远程工作的选择。

For people caring for elders or those who are sick or disabled,

对于要照顾老人 或患病、残疾人士的，

this means giving them reasonable amounts of leave.

应允许他们在合理范围内请假。

It means building projects that are based on milestones and deliverables,

同时，工作项目应该 有阶段性目标和可交付的指标，

rather than relying on frequent meetings and check-ins alone.

而非依赖于频繁的会议和打卡。

It means being really flexible

完成工作的时间和场所

about when and where the work gets done.

要有极高的灵活性。

And workplaces often thrive as a result.

这样做的工作场所 通常能快速发展。

And one final point.

最后一点。

Care work is one of the fastest-growing sectors of our economy.

照护工作是 经济中增长最快的部门。

As a result of a growing and an aging population,

这是人口的增长和老龄化造成的，

over two billion people in the world will need care by 2030.

至 2030 年，世界上 将有 200 万人需要照护。

This means that the time is now to shift the way we think about caring for them.

我们现在就应该改变 对于照护他们的看法。

This aging population is going to need support.

老龄化人口会需要许多帮助。

They're going to need new solutions.

他们会需要新的解决方案。

This means innovations, jobs, new industries.

我们需要创新、工作岗位和新产业。

And where many other jobs are lost to automation,

许多工作已经被自动化取代，

the one job that we're so uniquely good at as humans

但人类擅长 且难以被取代的唯一工作

is caring for other humans.

就是照顾其他人类。