In the US it started to collapse because of imported cheap labor from Mexico that drove down their overall standard of living.
wobbles,
the same has happened here since so much of our revenue is syphoned away by the boat people phenomenon & so many other outfits clawing at public funding. There's nothing left to spend on infrastructure & building up the economy. Simply a case of too many snouts in the trough. The Public Service being the worst.

Here here Sonia, our kids were raised just like your kids, soccer piano ballet and swimming lessons and they are now role model young adults, with our daughter soon to be a mother herself.

I have often thought that many of these so called 'experts', the ones who are quick to judge your shortcomings as a parent, arnt even parents themselves, or, they are in a same sex relationship and, if they do happen to raise children, then I would suggest their kids run a far greater risk of being disadvantaged than ours.

Finally, our kids, now adults love and respect us as parents and to us, this is far more important than spending time at after school care where among other things they are often exposed to bad habits, as ASC is often used as a child minding service for the rich.

Excellent article, thank you Sonia.
Life is full of sacrifice, and the greatest and most essential of these should be for the effective rearing and care of one's children.
A person may rationalize a host of seemingly legitimate and honest reasons for outsourcing a huge part of their child-rearing responsibilities - to facilitate both parents (or a sole-parent) having to maintain full-time employment - but such thinking is grossly flawed, because the inescapable reality is that children need and deserve extensive quality time with at least one parent (and most importantly from the 'mum'). What the parent chooses to include in that quality time will determine whether the child/children will be 'left-behind' in the later competition for progress, achievement and success.

'Nannies' and 'Early-Learning Professionals' will ever be a poor substitute for a genuinely caring and capable parent.
(And, aspiring 'parents' who lack relevant skills, motivation or capacity, should seek relevant development - or else, leave childbirth and parenting to those who do have 'the right stuff'.)

Suze, your rationalization may appear compelling, but it can only ever be far from optimal. IMHO.

I second Saltpetre's comments.

The round instead of square ends on a swimming pool, or a new Subaru instead of a secondhand Hyundai are not fair exchanges for not being there for your infant's first word or steps.

The time between birth and school goes like the wind.

It is about what one sees as more important in the world

Well - that says it all! we'll just have to ensure full employment AGAIN in some way - maybe we need to get rid of the MADIF (Mandatory Dual Income Family) - that should free up around 40% of jobs.....

This compulsory two parent working bit came about with people wanting more in less time. A completely landscaped fully fitted out house and nothing less will do. It backfired and the prices of housing tripled, due to the amount of disposable money in the household.
My wife never worked outside except when she was sixteen on a chekout at coles. That was 42 years ago, and is still a social butterfly as she says.