A new study has revealed that, on average, construction workers will lose around £1,300 during the summer as a result of having to take time off to take care of their children during school holidays. Furthermore, the poll found that London construction workers lose the most money due to having to care for their children; with an average of £1,850 lost as a result of having no one to look after their children.
The team at business insurance website, constructaquote.com, polled a total of 2,978 UK based Britons aged 18 and over, all of whom work in the construction industry and have at least one child aged between four and 12. All participants polled have partners that also work full-time.
The participants were spread across different areas of the country to gauge how the amount of money lost, as a result of the summer holidays, changes from region to region. Each participant also revealed that they did not receive sick or holiday pay from their current employer.
Participants were originally asked to state whether they had needed to take any time off work during the summer holidays so far, in order to take on childcare responsibilities. The vast majority (83%) admitting they’d had to. The average length of time taken off work by each construction worker so far this summer was five days.
When asked if they had the option to hire outside help to look after their kids instead of taking the days off, over half (52%) admitted that they did, but were not prepared to pay for the cost of childcare. When asked to reveal the reasons why they had taken time off work to care for their children instead of their partner doing so, the majority (37%) revealed that their partner earns more money and couldn’t take the time off, whilst 21% admitted that their partner works shift patterns and needed the day time to sleep and rest.
Lyndon Wood, CEO and creator of www.constructaquote.com, made the following comments regarding the study and its findings: “This study really does show the rising cost of childcare and it’s worrying that workers are willing to refuse paid work in order to look after their children rather than pay for childcare. For those lucky enough to have close friends and family nearby that are happy to look after children at a discounted rate or for free, it may seem ludicrous that workers need to take time off during the school holidays, but it is the sad reality for many working families.”
