Schools need to stop organising plays and meetings during working hours

My son's school is constantly organising shows and teacher meetings during working hours and it needs to stop.

It might seem like I'm having a bit of a moan about a non-problem but it is so frustrating when my son brings home letter after letter about school events I need to attend during the day. With Ireland's high cost of living it means that most families have both parents working, so why is this never taken into account when meetings and school plays are being organised? There have been so many days were I've had to take time off work to attend something at my son's school. Last year I had to take two hours off work to attend his Christmas show which was held at 10 am and this year I expect I'll need to do the same. Only today I had to use my lunch break to attend his parent and teacher meeting because his father is also in work. My job is closer to the school so it made more sense for me to take the time off this time around. When I was a student at school all of our shows and meetings were held in the evenings so when exactly did things change? I know I'm not the only parent struggling with this as I've chatted with many parents at the school gates and they too had to take time off work, meaning either loss of wages or that they will have to work longer hours to make up for it. Those with no immediate family nearby felt particularly under pressure because if they didn't find a way to attend there would be no one else to. It's something that the schools could easily resolve by changing the times that they hold events. I always want to be there for my son and support him but finding time around my working hours makes it more difficult to do and because of this there have been things that I have had to miss. Modern family life is different from what it was a generation ago but still most schools organise ceremonies, plays and meetings as if there will always be one parent at home or available to attend during the day. What do you think? Have you come up against the same problem? Tweet us your thoughts at @herfamilydotie or leave us a comment on our Facebook page.