The Working Mothers Millennium


On the brink of the new millenium, I browsed the Web to find out how many working mothers there are now compared to several decades ago. We all know that the number of working mothers is on the rise, but probably have no idea of just how many. I was unable to get the total number of working mothers, but found some percentages which can give you a good picture.

I did find a page that has some interesting statistics compiled by Catalyst, a non-profit research and business advisory organization http://www.wwork.com/Home/mom.htm . Their comparison is based on figures in 1976 and 1996. Here are some highlights:

  • 40% of working women are mothers of children under age 18
  • 83% of new mothers returned to the labor force within 6 months after childbirth
  • 55% of working women provide half or more of their household income, among married women, 48% provide half or more of the household income
  • 71% of all singles mothers are employed
  • 7% of all families conform to the tradition of wage-earning dad, a stay-at-home mom, and one or more children

    • I really didn't think the numbers would be this high, but there are reasons why working mothers are on the rise. The cost of living is higher. People want to have the good things in life. The number of single mothers is rising due to higher divorce rates and more women keeping their children who are born out of wedlock. The job market is unstable so wives seek employment or hold on to their current jobs as insurance against their own or their spouse's employment situation. More women are developing careers and want to retain their jobs in fear of losing their footing in the workplace or the inability to exercise the skills they worked hard to learn. Women are gaining pay equity or finding better opportunities for higher paying positions so their income is a substantial contribution to the household. Women are seeking independence and want to be free to spend money on themselves. They also want to have a sense of accomplishment by carrying out responsibilities outside the home.

    If we look back to the early part of this century, women had very little independence. They couldn't vote and were virtually the property of their husbands. Even during the World Wars, women were hired to replace the men who vacated their jobs to fight overseas. As soon as the men returned, the women were sent back to their homes to be the "little woman" again.

    The copyright of the article The Working Mothers Millennium in Tips for Working Mothers is owned by Maureen Fleury. Permission to republish The Working Mothers Millennium in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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