Parenting · Uncategorized

US Birthrate and Fertility Rates Dropping, Many Possible Reasons

I have been reading about the US’s declining birthrate along with the older generation reaching retirement age. The people they quoted acted worried about a smaller working population vs larger retired, disabled and sick/aging population. They named everything from women now choosing to put off having kids leading to a decline in fertility rates to Planned Parenthood and similar resources that help women plan out and prevent pregnancies. Paul Ryan even went as far as saying he did his part and had three kids.

What are the main reasons that keep coming up in discussions where choosing to either put off or avoid having kids is the subject?

The top reasons seem to be lack of good, affordable healthcare- even a lot of people working full time with degrees seem to have trouble affording the costs of paying insurance, deductibles and copays. Even if you’re lucky enough to have a decent insurance, the US has a higher mortality rate for both pregnant women and babies than a lot of other developed countries.

The costs associated with having kids also plays a huge role- it costs over 200k to raise a child and most of the time daycare for one child alone will cost over 20k a year. I know we were looking into daycares locally (low cost of living area) and decided not to because it would literally eat my whole paycheck. Daycares are also getting to be less trustable. They offer assistance, but also now allow random women to put in to run day cares out of their homes.  It’s frequently on the news about daycare providers harming kids, having drug paraphernalia and dangerous items (knives etc) out in easy reach and occasionally, they have gone as far as having children die in their care. This happens at the shady lower cost as well as higher, upper scale daycares so can you really trust daycares?

Maternity pay/leave is another higher up on the chart- most places do not pay adequately nor do they seem to give long enough leave to make it worth using. If you get pregnant while working in a lot of different places, if you already have temporary disability insurance, and have been working for over a year you can get paid 6 week leave. If you work less than a year and are not paying into it prior to getting pregnant, you’re out of luck unless the store also has maternity leave benefits mapped out and you’re eligible.

High costs of rent and cost of living in general– Couple that with the next on the list, stagnant and low incomes and you have large numbers of people who can barely pay back their astronomical loans while paying all other bills and you have the recipe for holding off on having kids. The costs of living continue to climb while wages are staying the same overall.

Women now have the option to have kids or not– this is a huge factor I’m sure. Women now have the options of birth control, they can go to college and focus on their career instead of getting married and staying home and not every women who grows up is forced by society to have kids (or be outcast).

But with the positive, negative can come in as well- women have choices now and there have been studies linking later maternal age can lead to infertility and other complications.

There have also been suggestions that fertility rates are dropping some maybe due to environment and others may be due to the later start dates for starting families and having kids but there have been studies that as a whole, rates are dropping.

There are many different opinions, ideas and reasons that people are holding off on having kids and that may not be a bad thing. Our population right now is aging, but after that generation leaves, won’t it start to even out again? Gen X started having less kids than the boomers did and now we’re down to a birthrate of 1.8 as of 2016. It is no longer needed to have a lot of kids to ensure the survival of your family’s genetics and it’s no longer that cheap to raise kids.

What reasons do you think I have missed?

 

 

Uncategorized

Stop Blaming Millennials for your Failure to Evolve

Are millennials really to blame for so many failing businesses or industries? It seems every month there are new articles and lists about all the “beloved” industries that are failing and the millennial generation is to blame. Are we to blame, or are these industries and businesses just failing to keep up with changing times?

Retail, for one, is changing rapidly. The rise of Amazon from a book selling site to the powerhouse it is now is proof. Online retail is picking up popularity so stores like Walmart and Kroger are pushing to get in on it. Same with convenience, more people are now wanting to get their grocery shopping done faster so online site to store pickups are being developed. Walmart offers purchase online, a group of shoppers pick everything up and they deliver it to your car when you check in at an onsite kiosk. Kroger is offering similar and so are other retailers. Amazon has been testing out cashier less stores in some states.

Stores like KMart are failing and closing down all around. Toys R Us closed. Walmart and Target are both still standing firm. Walmart is constantly changing. They now have (too many) apps to work around various offers. They offer ship to store for free- you can order anything they sell online and have it shipped in less than a week to a store close to you for free. They also let you do your grocery shopping online and pick it up at the store.

Some stores are testing delivery to peoples’ homes.

Outside of Retail, taxi cab services are taking a hit thanks to giants like Uber and other driver services. Ubers tend to pick up faster. I know personally, I waited 4 hours for a cab once and gave up. They are failing to stack up to the standards of the customers, so now other services are starting to beat them.

We are also blamed for run of the mill, nothing special restaurants (Applebees being a prime example). I personally don’t know many people who are huge Applebee’s fans. Last time I went was using a gift card and the food is basically generic- there is nothing memorable about going (although I did have good service with my food limitations and didn’t get sick). Other restaurants similar are also feeling hits- The bar and grill is my personal favorite type of restaurant, but it seems to be failing just as much. People in my age range are wanting faster service- but healthier services and how the business owners give back is just as important.

Not all businesses are able to keep up with the changing times, but quit blaming a whole generation for not being interested.

Napkins are a waste of money when paper towels are more absorbent, golf is boring, country clubs are boring to those of us not interested in drinking and restaurants like Applebees don’t stand out.

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