Thursday, April 26th, 2007...9:35 am
NYT: Family or Career?
Well here’s proof that it actually is a forced choice:
Sixty percent of married mothers of preschool children are now in the work force, four percentage points fewer than in 1997. The rate for married mothers of infants fell by about six percentage points, to 53.5 percent. The bureau further reports that the declines “have occurred across all educational levels and, for most groups, by about the same magnitude.”
Moreover:
Should we care if women leave the work force? Yes, because participation in public life allows women to use their talents and to powerfully affect society. And once they leave, they usually cannot regain the income or status they had. The Center for Work-Life Policy, a research organization founded by Sylvia Ann Hewlett of Columbia, found that women lose an average of 18 percent of their earning power when they temporarily leave the work force. Women in business sectors lose 28 percent.
1 Comment
May 2nd, 2007 at 9:47 am
I have some difficulty with “Yes, because participation in public life allows women to use their talents and to powerfully affect society” -let alone whith the introduction on the notion of “status”. What status? Who wants to be a status seeker? Only effete parvenues and snobs!
I am a 70 year old male and I have come to the conclusion that the most powerful way I affected society in my life was by bringing up a decent family. I fear that this is the condition of the great majority of human beings, male or female. The exceptions are the Einsteins, Picassos or Garcia Marquezes of this world. If you are in that league, congratulations and do go ahead. Otherwise you may be barking up the wrong tree.
With this I do not mean to imply that I am against women pursueing a career: just that the reasons you advance are not very convincing.