These fathers choose to reduce their working hours to stay home and take care of their children.

Instead of cramming into the office for 12 hours a day, many highly educated fathers are proactively reducing their working hours or switching to remote work to stay home and care for their children.

When Michael Toribio (now 34), who became a father in 2021, was just one year away from being promoted to vice principal of an elementary school in Florida. However, after considering the cost of childcare and the pressure of 12-hour workdays, he decided to switch to working remotely for an online education company.

Despite a 30% drop in income, Michael insists the trade-off is entirely worthwhile. "Working from home saves us a significant amount on childcare costs," he shared. His wife, Melanie, also works as a university academic advisor with a flexible schedule.

Personal choice or circumstances?

Michael's decision reflects a growing trend in the U.S. New research shows that, following the Covid-19 pandemic, fathers with college degrees are reducing their working hours to spend more time with their families.

According to data analysis from the American Institute for Men and Boys, fathers with college degrees and young children are now reducing their average work hours by 6 hours per week in exchange for more than 4 hours dedicated to family and childcare. This research is based on federal government time-use data, comparing two three-year periods before and after the Covid-19 pandemic (up to 2019 and 2024).

This represents a significant shift from the two decades before the pandemic. Twenty-five years ago, fathers in America largely remained unchanged in their housework and childcare habits, despite the increasing number of mothers entering the workforce.

This shift is occurring against the backdrop of an increasingly unfavorable job market for men in the US. Throughout the past year, job growth has been largely concentrated in the healthcare and social assistance sectors (which are traditionally dominated by women), while industries with a large male workforce have seen job losses.

The unemployment rate among fathers with children under 6 years old is projected to reach 2.8% in 2025. While this represents a slight increase from the 2.2% recorded in the post-pandemic period (2022-2023), it remains significantly lower than the national unemployment rate of 4.3%.

Nevertheless, overall employment figures for fathers remain stable. Researchers believe this shift stems from personal choice, not forced circumstances. According to data from the U.S. Department of Labor, the labor force participation rate for fathers is projected to reach nearly 94% in 2025, virtually unchanged from pre-pandemic levels.

Research in the US shows that fathers with college degrees and young children are now reducing their average work hours by 6 hours per week in exchange for more than 4 hours spent caring for their families and children.

Narrowing the gender gap in household chores.

Ariel Binder, an economist and author of the study, shared: "Instead of working extra hours to chase promotions or try to meet project deadlines, men are now spending that time with their families."

Agreeing with this view, Misty Heggeness, an economist at the University of Kansas, added that besides men's personal choices, women's career advancements have contributed to encouraging fathers to return home and share more household chores.

However, the burden of housework is still not completely balanced. According to the American Institute for Men and Boys Research, mothers with young children still spend nearly 15 more hours per week than men on thankless tasks such as cooking, cleaning, and childcare.

However, the balance is gradually shifting as, for decades, the number of women graduating from university has consistently surpassed that of men, even making up the majority at the master's and doctoral levels. As a result, the proportion of couples where the wife earns as much or more than the husband has increased sharply in recent years.

"We are witnessing a shift in power for women, giving them more leverage in negotiating family responsibilities," Heggeness observed. "I don't think that if the labor market deteriorates, things will revert to traditional gender norms. On the contrary, it could accelerate the trend that this research has shown."

Now we no longer have to endure being stuck in rush hour traffic jams. Although our income has decreased slightly, the whole family feels much happier.

Mike Anderson, 48, shared

In 2021, Mike Anderson, a tech worker, moved with his wife and children from Atlanta to Rabun County in northern Georgia. Around the same time, he decided to decline a CTO position because it required more overtime and a mandatory office job.

"I forgave an additional income of about $130,000 a year on top of my current salary, but I don't regret that decision," the 48-year-old man shared. His current remote work allows him more time for his wife, parents, and children. Plus, he can freely go to the gym, travel, and participate in volunteer activities.

Don't miss your child's early milestones.

A similar trend is emerging in Singapore. Since his wife's maternity leave ended in 2019, Andrew Fam (39 years old) has proactively taken on the responsibility of caring for the family so that his wife can pursue her dream of becoming a teacher. Because he can work remotely in the software engineering industry, his daily routine consists of caring for his two young children (ages 7 and 3) during the day and starting work when his wife returns home.

However, maintaining this arrangement is not easy. He shared, "I had to put in a lot of effort to find and negotiate a work-from-home position." In 2025 alone, he turned down four job offers because he couldn't reach an agreement on remote work. Despite facing considerable pressure balancing work and childcare, Fam still affirms that the past seven years have been the best time because he has witnessed his children growing up every day.

Andrew Fam and his wife read books to their children.

The first time my child went to the toilet by themselves, the first time they ate properly on their own… Every small achievement they made felt like an achievement of my own.

Ang Siang Chen said

Meanwhile, in September 2025, Ang Siang Shen (40 years old) decided to quit his job in the tech industry to stay home full-time and teach his son himself. To best prepare his 3-year-old son, he enrolled in a childcare skills class. This decision helped him not miss any of his son's early milestones.

Becoming entirely dependent on his wife's income from the tourism industry forced Shen to cut back on previous expenses like eating out or watching sports. He admitted that raising children requires immense patience and emotional control, but "it's that 10% of sweet joy that motivates me to get through the remaining 90% of the hard work."

According to the Singapore Ministry of Manpower's annual Workforce Report, the number of stay-at-home dads in the country has increased from 1,900 (in 2022) to 3,000 (in 2025). This increase has more than doubled the proportion of dads in the stay-at-home (non-labor force) population, from 3.5% to 7.4% in three years.

Source: Wall Street Journal, Straits Times

Source: https://phunuvietnam.vn/nhung-ong-bo-chon-giam-gio-lam-de-o-nha-cham-con-238260531131515404.htm