Common difficulties that working moms face

Prior to 1970, most families were supported by one income, and that person was the typical male head of the household. Women who did work were generally employed in lower paying clerical and sales jobs. Career options for women have increased greatly over the past forty years. Many now enter professions that were exclusively reserved for men, such as medicine, law, accounting, and engineering.

Changing economic conditions have also made it more difficult for families to manage on only one income, making it necessary for most moms to earn a significant income. Working moms, however, still face difficulties that men don't.

For one thing, women and minorities still confront "the glass ceiling", which means they are still not being considered for executive management positions over their male counterparts. As a result, an increasingly greater number of women have chosen to become entrepreneurs. Owning a small business, however, generally requires working longer hours-including week-ends. This is most difficult for single mothers, who have less time available to spend with their children. As a college professor, a significant percentage of my students are working mothers; some of whom are single. Surprisingly, they are often my best students because they tend to be highly motivated. They do, however, tend to miss more classes than other students because of childcare issues..

Another issue facing working mothers is that many husbands still believe their wives' working careers should take a back seat to their own. Working mothers are expected to perform the majority of household chores, as well as oversee the bulk of the child-raising. This has led to increased tensions between spouses, and ultimately, an increase in the divorce rate. The ones most hurt by this, however, are the children.

Finally, there is the disparity in income between men and women. Although the gap is narrowing, women still earn less than men. This places an additional burden on single mothers, in particular. They are often forced to work second jobs to support themselves and their children. This results in their children having reduced parental attention and supervision.

Working moms are still faced with issues that are largely the result of the inability of society to change with the current times. Women still hold a small minority of executive management positions. Single women with children face an even greater uphill struggle for consideration for career advancement opportunities in the workplace, because employers believe working mothers would be too distracted by attending to their children's needs. Employers will have to be more sensitive to the needs of working mothers, or risk losing many valuble employees.

Source: Leslie Schwab(Helium)