Many moms and dads are anxious about the job market, but their work-family dance can become a lot more complicated if they take graveyard shifts. Plus, they and their kids may pay a price, the American Prospect reports this week.

Preschool children whose parents work nonstandard hours are less likely to be cared for in formal child-care settings that may provide important school-readiness experiences. One study finds that children under age 3 whose mothers have worked nonstandard hours perform significantly worse on cognitive tests. Problematic effects of parents' schedules are apparently not limited to young children; levels of depression reported by adolescents are higher when mothers work evenings (and also when fathers work irregular hours). – “Outside the 9-to-5: When most of us are at home, at night and on the weekend, millions of people - many of them women with children - are at work,” American Prospect, 6/9/09.

The story makes the point that fast-food workers, hospital staffers, police officers and others working outside the traditional grind don’t get the same work-family attention as the rest of us. That is a big deal in the global marketplace where businesses increasingly feel pressure to run 24-7.

What is the answer? We are sure to hear ideas from the Obama administration, which is trying to make work-life balance a major issue inside the beltway. The American Prospect article points out protections that off-shift workers enjoy in Europe, but it seems unlikely this country will adopt Norwegian, Dutch or German models. But, I can envision political support for expanding off-hours child care options.

It is hard enough finding quality child care from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Can you imagine locating good care for an 11 p.m.-to-7 a.m. shift?

In the Seattle area, "for all programs (both centers and family child care) 17 percent offer evening care; 8% offer overnight and 12% offer weekends," says Child Care Resources here in Seattle.

This information helped shape an intriguing four-part series, “When Opting Out Isn't an Option: It's time to shift the conversation about women and work,” which explores the real mommy challenge: The majority of women cannot choose to opt out or opt in, but have to work as they raise their kids.