More single working fathers are trickling into the workforce and looking for ways to fit into the puzzle that is the US economy.
Since 2000, the US gained around 700,000 single dads, a 44% increase, joining the workforce as of 2024. The share of families headed by single working dads increased from 4.6% to 7% over that period. With childcare costs rising, many of these parents aim to find increasingly rare jobs that balance seeing their kids and affording all it takes to raise them.
Single parenthood, whether single dad or mom, takes up almost a quarter of all families in the country, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Single dads are finding different ways to make it work on one income. Some have been reselling clothes and phones and becoming entrepreneurs.
One single dad that we spoke to works as a tech marketing lead and said he needs remote work to support his three kids. Daniel Medved, a single dad of three in Seattle, said his situation limits him to only fully remote roles, which shrinks his application pool. He said his company has been more than helpful when it comes to raising his family.
“Flexibility has been the single most powerful retention tool that my company has had,” Medved said. He needs to get his two daughters and son ready for school daily and “If you add a commute to that, the math doesn’t work.”
Single moms and dads are also utilizing DoorDash, Uber Eats, and other gig jobs to make ends meet. Previous reporting from Business Insider showed that some parents rely on these means instead of working a 9-to-5 job with less flexibility.
“I had to pick up multiple other side gigs to afford to stay on my feet,” said Starla, a single mom and driver for Uber Eats in 2024. “Although it isn’t a ‘full-time job’ or ‘in a proper setting,’ it’s still hard taking on four different jobs, working 16-18 hours a day on top of pick up and drop offs to school.”
Single working mothers still make up a greater share of the single parents working. In 2024, around 17% of all working families were headed by single mothers.
Remote work, however, may not be as easy to come by for single parents as it was a few years ago. CEOs are becoming more staunch supporters of RTO mandates.
“If the requirements dictated by this dynamic do not align with your personal desires, you have every right to find a career opportunity that is suitable to your aspirations and needs,” AT&T’s John Stankey wrote in a memo to employees.
Medved said that since he sets strict boundaries, his family and job thankfully don’t get in the way of each other. His life is nonstop work, whether it’s slide decks or playground slides — and trying to go to sleep on time for the next day.
“I don’t think that being a single dad makes me less effective at work. It makes me a lot more focused and intentional with my time,” he said.
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