Grandparents should be paid for taking care of their grandchildren: in some countries, this proposal is already being discussed

If becoming a parent is good news that brings you much joy, the pleasure of becoming grandparents shouldn't be underestimated either: have you ever been pressured by your parents into having children just so they could have grandchildren? We are sure that it has happened to more than one person. However, this role is often "taken for granted": we always talk about how hard it is for parents to look after young children, how tiring it is for a new mother to breastfeed day and night, and so on. All true of course, but so is looking after kids when you are of an advanced age, like most grandparents are, of course.

To this end an interesting, novel proposal was suggested to help grandparents who frequently find themselves taking care of their grandchildren.

via Economist

bryandilts/Pixabay - Not the actual photo

In short, grandparents who take care of children should receive money from the state to "reward" for their "work".

If we take a moment to think about it,  grandparents basically perform the same tasks as a babysitter, but for free. Clearly a grandparent would never ask for their child for money to look their grandchildren, but there are costs involved. And in fact, there are many parents who rely on their kids' grandparents - for many reasons.

In short, grandparents are basically indispensable and this was how the idea of state-sponsorship was born.

Freepik - Not the actual photo

The idea is that grandparents who take care of children should be remunerated through cash subsidies or tax deductions.

This "contribution" would also encourage couples to have children by removing some of the worries they may have: starting a family is expensive and many couples put off having children for this reason. If they could count on the availability of the grandparents - themselves encouraged by financial aid - then, more young couples would be prepared to have children.

We know that grandparents take care of their grandchildren out of a deep love. But this doesn't detract from the fact that financial support would be a great reward and incentive. What do you think of this idea?