
DATE: Thursday, October 9, 1997             TAG: 9710100988

SECTION: FRONT                   PAGE: A4   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: FOCUS

SOURCE: BY ELIZABETH SIMPSON, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:  116 lines

FOCUS: MR. MOM AT WORK UNEMPLOYED DADS OR THOSE WITH FLEXIBLE WORK SCHEDULES ARE MORE ABLE TO PROVIDECARE FOR THEIR YOUNG CHILDREN. BUT AS THE ECONOMY IMPROVES, MORE FATHERS ARE RETURNING TO THE WORK FORCE.

Twenty-four-hour shifts may sound like a grueling work day, but David Hutcheson's firefighter schedule gives him a rare opportunity.

Since he works around-the-clock shifts 10 days a month, he can take care of his two sons on his days off while his wife works.

``It's awesome,'' Hutcheson said. ``I feel sorry for dads who can't do this.''

While Hutcheson is not alone in the child-care duty, the percentage of fathers doing so has gone down. The Census Bureau released a report Wednesday that showed the percentage of fathers in two-parent families who cared for children while the mothers worked dropped from 30 percent in 1991 to 25 percent in 1993.

The report also found that the proportion of fathers who were primary care providers - those who cared for preschoolers during more of the mothers' working hours than any other care provider - went from 22 percent in 1991 to 19 percent in 1993. Census officials link the slight decline to a rebounding economy rather than fathers who aren't up to the task.

``The decline does not mean fathers don't want to care for their children, but rather that we live in a world where there's a need for two parents to work,'' said Lynne Casper, author of the study.

The report also took a close look - for the first time - at what kinds of fathers were more likely to fill the child-care gap. It found that firefighters, police and security personnel were twice as likely as people in other occupations to care for their children while wives worked.

Casper said that is probably due to the ability to work either night shifts or 24-hour work schedules, which left the dads with more day-time hours to care for children.

For Hutcheson, taking on more of the child-care duties meant getting to see his children more often. When his two sons were first born, he worked two jobs - firefighter and longshoreman - while his wife stayed home.

But then he realized he wasn't getting to see his children at all. So he quit the longshoreman job about three years ago. Since he works 24-hour shifts for the Virginia Beach Fire Department, he keeps his sons - 5-year-old Sam and 4-year-old Jimmy - on his days off. On those days his wife, Amy, works as a crisis counselor at First Hospital Corp.

While his days off work - firefighter work that is - have been a blur of diapers, bottles and Legos, he says it has been an experience he wouldn't trade for fishing trips and sleeping late. And now that his sons are older, the parenting work is getting easier.

``If you'd have asked me two years ago what it was like, you would probably have heard more frustration,'' Hutcheson said. ``But it's definitely worth it. I see a lot of things that a lot of fathers don't. I'm involved day-to-day. The boys don't run to their Mom for everything like a lot of kids do.''

The Census report, called ``My Daddy Takes Care of Me: Fathers as Care Providers'' found that 1.9 million fathers were their children's primary caregivers in 1993, down slightly from 2 million in 1991. ``Nineteen-ninety-one was an aberration because of the recession,'' Casper said. ``There were more dads who were unemployed or working part time. That was a time many companies were downsizing. In 1993, there were more men going back to work.''

The Census study, which was based on a survey of 37,000 households nationwide, also found that fathers who were veterans were more likely to care for their children than nonveterans. Also, the more preschoolers in the family, the more likely the father provided care. Fathers who were unemployed, working part time or working evening or night shifts were more likely to care for their preschoolers than those with full-time jobs and day shifts. Poor fathers were twice as likely as wealthier fathers to care for their preschoolers.

For many parents, the issue is not just financial, but involves a desire to spend more time with their children.

David and Bernadette Matson of Elizabeth City, N.C., both work at the Virginia Beach Police Department. While she works a 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. shift, her husband works a day shift, so when he gets home, the parenting duties are up to him.

That means David handles supper, baths, homework with 9-year-old Christopher and bedtime stories for 1-year-old Jack.

The couple has a baby sitter about 10 hours a week for the time between when Bernadette goes to work and David gets home, but the rest of the time is split between parents.

``We wanted to be with the children as much as possible,'' David said. ``It's challenging, but I love it.''

The only issue David and Bernadette Matson disagree on is housekeeping: ``She goes for the Home and Garden look,'' David said. ``I go for the Home and Lived-In look.'' ILLUSTRATION: PHILIP HOLMAN photos

...David Hutcheson...his two sons, 5-year-old Sam...and Jamie, 4...

Sam Hutcheson...Jamie...David...

Graphic

SURVEY FINDINGS

Major findings from a report released Wednesday by the Census

Bureau on fathers who care for their children while wives work:

The percentage of fathers in two-parent families who cared for

children while the mothers worked dropped from 30 percent in 1991 to

25 percent in 1993.

Fathers working in service occupations, such as police officers,

firefighters and security personnel were about twice as likely as

those in any other occupation to be taking care of their