Is the She-Cession Over? Not for Many Women in the Workplace

For many working mothers, the pandemic delivered a disproportionate kick in the teeth. Because the most affected industries tended to be those dominated by women, they lost their jobs at record levels in 2020. Despite being only 47 percent of the workforce at the beginning of 2020, women accounted for 54.5 percent of all jobs lost.

With kids home from school and daycare centers closed, even moms who remained employed took on so many extra hours caretaking, it was like having an additional part-time job. This nearly impossible balance led many women to step out of the workforce or avoid stepping back in when jobs began to recover.

READ: Balancing Work and Motherhood — Strategies for Success in a Busy World

Now, in the summer of 2023, the pandemic has receded and employment for women has recovered to levels from before, but there remain problems in the systems that support women’s ability to be in the workforce. What was true before 2020 is even more true today: For moms, life and work often do not work well together.

As a working mother, I can attest to the fact that our institutions are not built for working moms. Consider daycare centers that close by 6 and charge by the minute for lateness. School plays that start at 11 a.m. on Wednesday morning or doctor and dentist appointments that are offered only during work hours. Not enough slots in before- and after-school programs and widely varying start times for different schools. Limited spots and some of the highest costs in the country for summer childcare for school-age kids.

Recently I heard about one mom whose multiple children’s school start times are vastly different; one needs to be dropped off at 7:30, but the other does not start until 9 a.m. This mom was motivated to choose the school that started at 9 a.m. for her special needs child because of the before-school program it offered. But the program was not funded, and the mom was caught in a lurch. While her family needs her to bring in an income, she has not found a flexible employer to accommodate her schedule.

I am a working mom, but I am also a working mom with resources. I am married and was able to split drop-off duties with my husband when we were in the thick of parenting young kids. I recall spending years in a fog of guilt. I remember the relief I felt when, because of concerns about allergies, we were no longer allowed to bring homemade cupcakes to the classroom parties so my store-bought cupcakes were welcomed. The memories of the scramble at the beginning of every school year to find a college student to pick up my kids and help them with homework make me shudder. It rarely worked perfectly, and it was always stressful.

I recall each January, as I looked ahead to the coming summer with dread. Summer break felt like a big black hole that needed to be filled. And I remember the dollars we spent on summer camps or the summer babysitter so we could continue to work.

I was fortunate because I had the flexibility at work to tell everyone I would arrive late each summer morning when the camps did not start until 9 a.m. When I recently saw that the statistics on labor force participation rates (LFPR) for women with kids drop by several percentage points every summer, it was no surprise to me. For some women, working in the summer months is not worth it.

Things are not getting better. The pandemic led to the closure of over 16,000 childcare centers across the country. Today, 51 percent of Colorado is in a childcare desert, with more kids needing care than there are slots.

While the numbers of women back in the workforce tell a strong story of post-pandemic recovery, it is not the full story. These pressures that come from a shortage of affordable childcare affect women in numerous ways. Of all women likely to be employed today, women with a college degree or more are most likely, meaning they probably also have the resources to throw money at their childcare problems. Having children at home, especially young children, depresses employment for prospects for women, particularly when compared to women without children.

READ: Navigating the Post-Pandemic Workplace — Struggles, Solutions and the Return to Office Culture

It is time for us to talk openly about the Motherhood Penalty. In 2023 about 72 percent of women with children at home are working. But the earnings potential for mothers is less than for women without children. Claudia Goldin from Harvard University just won the Nobel Prize in Economics for her work showing that today much of the gender earnings gap arises with the birth of a woman’s first child. And even though women tend to increase their work as their children get older, they are not able to catch back up.

Research supports that hiring managers are less likely to hire women with kids and when they do, they offer lower salaries. While there is no hard data to prove this, women with children at home are perceived as being less committed to their jobs. These statistics are ironic given that it is well documented that women around the world reinvest up to 90 percent of their incomes back into their families, compared with men who invest 30-40 percent.

Because the children of today are the community leaders of tomorrow, a village approach to raising children feels as though it would set us all up for success. Universal Preschool, which just rolled out this fall, is a good start but only guarantees part-time care without having to pay for full days. Colorado’s Childcare Assistance Program (CCCAP) could be expanded to broader income levels to help make childcare more affordable.

Childcare centers, with whom we entrust our most precious family members, need help to support these low-margin businesses — possibly through help with rent in underutilized real estate so more of the fees can provide better pay for notoriously underpaid childcare workers.

While licensed childcare centers may not be able to meet all the needs in our communities, support for family, friends and neighbors who provide care could make a big difference in helping families feel more supported with their childcare needs.

Today I have two teenagers and can feel the pressures I felt as a mother with young children receding. However, I work with and manage women with small kids and I try to ensure I am understanding and accommodating, never assuming my coworkers are any less committed because they have young children. Instead, I remember the future of our community is in the hands of the children they are raising.

Tamra Ryan is the Common Sense Institute Coors Economic Mobility Fellow and CEO of the Women’s Bean Project, a social enterprise providing transitional employment in its food manufacturing business to women attempting to break the cycle of chronic unemployment and poverty