By: Hailey Wallschlaeger
Many women in America have chosen to
be stay-at-home mom’s. Chosen to watch their children grow up while their
husbands maintain a steady job. However, today they are staying at home because
they cannot find jobs that benefit their family enough to be willing to give up
time with their children. These moms also agree that staying home with the
children is a better decision; even if it means living on one income and
cutting their spending, the benefit that children receive from being raised
solely from their parents is easily worth it. An article from the Washington
Post states, “20% of all married mothers with children under 18 stay home-half
what it was in 1970. One in five children in the US today lives with a
stay-at-home mother married to a working husband. While in 1970, 41% of
children did.”
According to D’Vera Cohn of pewsocialtrends.org, “a
growing share of stay-at-home mothers (6% in 2012 compared to 1% in 2000) say
they are home with their children because they cannot find a job.” The amount
of women in the workforce is also declining causing a lack of jobs for women
with children. Women think that the opportunity
cost of staying home with their children is much greater than working for a
job that won’t even make a financial difference for their family. This decline
in women in the workforce is very discouraging for future women wanting to get
a job. Seeing this trend of a rise in stay at home moms is causing women to
lose hope of finding a job and they may not push themselves to get an education
knowing that it is so difficult.
According to Carol Morello of the Washington Post,
“the shift is most noticeable among women who are immigrants and who do not
have college educations.” This data shows that a college education is much more
valuable now than it was in the past. The competition for jobs is much higher
today and forces students to push their education as far as they can to have
better chances of getting a successful job in the future.
Many women were interviewed in Lynchburg, VA to
explain why they chose to stay at home than to get a job. A woman named Bethany
Gail said, “For newborn care you are looking at an average of $800-1000 a
month. That is somewhere around $12,000 a year. The average price for a
three-year old to be in preschool ranged between $500-800 a month on average,
so that’s around $7,000 a year. That didn’t factor in the cost of breakfast,
lunch, or after-hours care. That’s why I chose to stay home rather than to send
all my paychecks to a child-care provider.” Women like Bethany have some
opportunities to get jobs but they know the money they make won’t be benefiting
their family for the long run so they choose to abstain from working.
Works Cited
Kurtz,
Annalyn. "Stay-at-home moms on the rise." CNNMoney. Cable News
Network, 8 Apr. 2014. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.
<http://money.cnn.com/2014/04/08/news/economy/stay-at-home-moms/index.html?iid=SF_E_River>.
Morello,
Carol. "More moms stay at home, new research says." Washington
Post. The Washington Post, 9 Apr. 2014. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/more-moms-stay-at-home/2014/04/07/feb1f8bc-be91-11e3-b195-dd0c1174052c_story.html>.
"Stay-At-Home
Mom Rates On The Rise." - WSET.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.
<http://www.wset.com/story/25301458/stay-at-home-mom-rates-on-the-rise>.
"Stay-at-Home
Mothers on the Rise." Pew Research Centers Social Demographic Trends
Project RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.
<http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2014/04/08/after-decades-of-decline-a-rise-in-stay-at-home-mothers/>.
Well thought of and written article based on the scarcity of jobs in the US. Even thought the number of stay at home mothers is rising I wonder how much is do to the rougher economic times. The problem for many isn't finding jobs if they have a appropriate degree from college but the fact that they might need to move there family for the job. Also it is amazing to me the amount of people that are stay at homes moms when there family is still living in poverty. I wounder if these statistics only relate to married people or if all women are taken in for account. This was a well written post though.
ReplyDeleteThis article is a real eye opener to how hard it is to get a career started with a family. I understand why the mothers would rather stay home with their younger children but as they age, wouldn't they want a part time job or other activities to do while their kids are in school? The mothers are stuck in structural unemployment with not having the ability to have the type of schedules required. At my job there was a lot of single or married mothers working part time while their children were busy, so why couldn't others try for a "job" instead of a "career"?
ReplyDeleteAfter reading your article it brought new insight as to how intense and difficult it is to get a career going with a family. Now a days I thought it would be more common for mothers to be out working like women always fought to do. But, at the end of the day it is understandable that mothers would rather stay at home with their young children and take care of them and make sure they're getting nurtured the way that they should be. Also, I found it interesting how many mothers still decided to stay at home and take care of their children when they're living in poverty and could be out making more money to support the family. Personally I believe that one of the biggest problems with stay at home moms, is not because they want to stay home, but because it's very difficult to find a job in the economy as of right now. Overall, this was a very well written post and brought new insight as to how many mothers stay at home and are not out in the workforce.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jennifer stay at home moms are great when their children are younger because they are need more by the children but as the children grow older they don't seem to need extensive care like they did when they were babies or toddlers therefore the mother can put more time into pursuing a job or career of some sort.
ReplyDeleteMy mom is a stay at home mom, so I can agree with the fact that it is beneficial to have one parent raising the kids hands-on. It is sort of sad that more women are becoming stay-at-home moms, though, not because they necessarily want to be but because they cannot find jobs that would help their families. This is an example of frictional unemployment in the sense that some of these women may have initially looked for jobs but became discouraged because they realized that they would be better off living at home. It would certainly be more beneficial to families if they could live off of two incomes, but you need a good education to get a good job, and many of these women are just giving up on even getting an education because they see a low demand.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting to examine the trade offs of being a stay at home mom. Like you mentioned, for some, their job doesn't pay enough to offset the costs of daycare. However, for others the cost of spending time with your children, weighs more into the situation. In general, the decision to either work or have a stay at home parent comes with many trade offs. However, it is also important to realize that this doesn't have to be a permanent situation. While the children are young, a family can choose to have a stay at home parent—during these times they only purchase needs rather than excess luxuries and wants. However, as the child gets older and starts attending school, that parent could go back to work, and allow for more income within the family.
ReplyDeleteI would have to disagree with the fact that being a stay at home mom is always a good thing. I think there is a point in the childs life when the mom should stay home maybe 0-4/5 years old; after that the child will be in school so there is no reason to stay home. They can only grocery shop and clean the house so much until there is nothing being done. I believe the the marginal cost greatly outweighs the marginal benefit to stay home due to the fact that there is so many things that could go wrong. What if the husband were to experience structural or cyclical unemployment, what would the family do if that was the only income they relied on and they no longer have the same amount of money. I believe that stay at home moms are okay for a while, but when the child is old enough to go to school the mom should go back into the workforce and beneift the family with a larger total family income.
ReplyDeleteYou chose such an interesting topic that I had never thought of in economic terms! The growing numbers of stay-at-home moms could be because of a change in consumer expectations -- the consumers being families -- because after a very steep decline in stay-at-home moms some families may have decided that they preferred the benefits of having a parent raise their children every day rather than dropping them off at daycare. Also, I noticed that there was a steep increase of stay-at-home moms after 2009 which could have been due to the recession, so moms were dealing with cyclical unemployment and preferred to drop out of the labor force because the marginal benefits of raising their kids were greater than the marginal costs of looking for a job. Growing up with a mom who did not stay at home, but having friends whose moms did stay at home, I personally think that both choices can be beneficial but each family must consider the marginal costs and benefits before making this important economic decision. Great idea!
ReplyDeleteI definitely would not have considered this topic when thinking about what things affect the economy, but now you have shown me some interesting points that clearly do have an impact on the economy - not just in America. Working mothers are very common nowadays, but it's nice to see that some parents are willing to stay home with their children rather than send them to day-care. I personally plan on working until I have children, staying at home until they are old enough to go to school, and then returning to the workforce once they are at school on a daily basis. I agree that parents should stay with their children when they are young, but once the kids can go to school full time, I don't see a reason why the mothers can't go back to work. At least that's how I personally feel. I wouldn't want to be sitting home for 8 hours a day.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Samm. Being a stay at home mom isn't always going to be that great. After the child(ren) reach a certain age, maybe 5 or 6, there is no reason the mother can't and shouldn't go out and get a job. Even something part time. I just don't see the point for mothers to stay home when they don't need to. There is only so much for a woman to do in one house. Daycare and other childcare options are very pricey so I agree that it makes more sense to just stay home but, what's the reason to remain a stay at home mom while the kid(s) are in middle/high school or even elementary school? The comes a time in everyone's life where we don't dependent on our parents as much. And when we reach that point the mother should go back into the workforce. If I was a stay at home mom I would find much more satisfaction knowing I helped my child along for awhile then went back to work and made money that can be used for anything in the future, new cars, vacations, whatever. Growing up my mom did not stay home but I know people with moms that did. Either way, whatever helps your family more in the end is what you should do
ReplyDeleteA stay-at-home mom isn't counted as unemployed if they haven't looked for a job in the past four weeks, so why should we push stigma upon such hardworking, devoted women? Stay-at-home moms don't necessarily provide income, but to them, the opportunity cost of not making income is worth the ability to nurture their child, maintain a healthy household environment, and enriching the child's education and family bonds. Maybe after a point, they could become frictionally unemployed for a while before looking for a new job after the child matures, but it is often a good idea to retire temporarily to nurture a child.
ReplyDeleteI have never really thought about the impact stay at home mothers have on our economy. Initially I agree that it is beneficial for mothers to stay at home with their children which is why most companies and corporations allow new mothers to take maternity leave and still maintain their current job. However, after maternity leave I think it would still make more sense for mothers to return to work and pay for the child care because although it is expensive, the family would still be generating a profit that could then be put back into the economy. By decreasing the number of women in the workforce, like you said, it is going to continue to be harder for women to get jobs in the future. Although women choosing not to work is an example of frictional unemployment, overtime the decrease in economic stimulation could potentially lead to an economic downturn and result in increases in cyclical unemployment.
ReplyDeleteI am slightly confused as to why this article doesn't mention anything about stay at home dads. Men are suffering from the recession just as much as women, yet it seems that this article only focuses on the mothers of the household to balance home life with their careers. I'm sure stay at home dads are more common nowadays with women having equal opportunities education-wise. Therefore, perhaps women shouldn't be the only ones sacrificing their careers to have children. I feel the mentality of the stereotypical "stay at home moms" remains an obstacle for women planning to pursue careers that require much of their time. Perhaps if the stress put on women to carry the role of taking care of children was lifted by balancing the care taking between men and women, income wouldn't be such an issue for mothers.
ReplyDeleteI really like this topic! I would not have thought about writing about it. I really think that a lot of women just want to be able to nurture their child throughout the most important years of their development. As Kasey and Samm said above, once the children get to a certain age, their is no use for a stay at home mom once they get to kindergarten or first grade and are away from home for 7 hours a day. Time were mothers are able to go to work and help provide income for their growing children. There are people out there though who, all they want to do when they get older is be a stay-at-home mom, and for them the opportunity cost of the income versus time with your child, it is worth it.
ReplyDeleteThis was a really interesting topic that I had never even considered before. The way you analyzed it does make sense though. The costs of living have increased throughout the years yet minimum wage has not adjusted efficiently enough for mothers. Minimum wage though is a whole different topic but kind of goes hand in hand with this. At this point though it will be interesting to see how this trend continues in future years and the possible effects it will have on the economy.
ReplyDeleteI think your topic was really interesting and it's something that was new and different to see. You did a nice job of incorporating econ into your post by talking about the opportunity costs of staying at home and working. I personally think that there's a way to even out the costs of staying at home with your kids and working too. I personally changed my career path I intended to follow for college after thinking about the future and having a life. I wanted to be a doctor, but with ten years of school, how can you start a family and actually be around to see them grow up, which is why I'm going into nursing.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that even though there have always been stay at home mom in the past, the reasons for staying at home are different then they were. In the past, they believed the men made enough money to support the family, but today, more mom's stay home because of they can't find jobs. It is interesting to think that the reasons have changed over the years. But it also makes sense, because as mentioned child care has been expensive too, and mom's probably benefit more from staying home and not having to pay for child care. What will happen in the next decade if this trend continues? This was a very interesting topic and nice job!
ReplyDeleteNice article Hailey! My mom was a stay at home mom up until I was 17 years old, so I was totally intrigued by this article. I think having my mom at home benefited me completely and totally molded me into the person I am today. So often I see parents working and not spending enough time with their kids, so it is refreshing to see that women are seeing the importance of that. However, once the children reach a certain age, I do not see anything wrong with going out and getting a part time job. I think working after being home for a while can be liberating for women, so even if it is a job working as a waitress or something you don't need a degree for, any extra cash can help out.
ReplyDeleteIt is unfortunate that so many stay at home moms are in that position because they can't find a job. However, I think it would benefit the economy and their families if they could get a job once the child was entering school. Openings aren't always available with perfect timing, I understand that, but if it is open, I think it would benefit the family more to have both parents working than just one.
ReplyDeleteWhile it appears to be that almost half of these women have a high school education or are dropouts, what about the other half? Are these women having difficulty finding high pay jobs due structural unemployment like the other half? Also, this raises the awareness for the rising costs of childcare when a woman’s salary would only be able to provide other child care organizations rather than go towards the household expenses and savings.
ReplyDeleteI have seen this predicament first hand with my mom who was a stay at home mom. Young women don't think about their potential of having children when they choose their career paths. My mom went to beauty school and became a hair dresser. She didn't realize that these long tiring hours would get in the way of her hopes to have children someday. I'm also really glad she decided to take a break from working because my upbringing would have been extremely different if she wasn't always there for me like she was. However, a hairdresser is still a job that she could return to after her children grew up. Women need to consider these types of jobs instead of career focused jobs. For example, instead of returning to the hair salon my mom opened a daycare inside of our home which has proved to be extremely efficient while she succeeds in balancing her family life with work.
ReplyDeleteOnly being 18 years old, I really haven’t thought about how I am going to handle having kids and a career but I’m sure once the time comes, it is going to be very difficult having to decide what is best. Living off only one income can be very difficult and at some point it necessary that these stay at home moms need to get back into the workforce. It’s awful that some women just end up being a stay at home mom because there are no job opportunities. If a large amount of women start becoming stay at home mom’s, we will lose the respect we deserve.
ReplyDeleteI find it strange that only one in five mothers are stay at home moms, because my own mother was a stay at home mom for most of my life. To me, that is what is normal, and I don't know what it's like to grow up with a nanny or in day care. I believe it was worth it to have that upbringing, but I don't see that happening for myself in the future when I become a mom some day. The statistic that the number of stay at home mothers has cut in half since the 70s does not surprise me because most families need two incomes to make ends meet, but it does surprise me that the percentage of stay at home moms is now increasing. This was a very interesting article!
ReplyDeleteAlthough being a stay at home mom can be such a pleasure, having to resort to that because there is a lack of job opportunities is disappointing. Seeing the data above is a true realization that there are a lot of unemployed women relying on their husband's income. What about the single parents? The cost of nannies and babysitters while the single parent is out bringing in the money has got to be extremely expensive. This frightens me for what's to come in the future, so I can only hope that the job opportunities increase.
ReplyDeleteMy mom is currently a stay at home mom. She decided to leave her job about 5 years ago to be a stay at home mom, however now that my younger siblings are older and in school she is looking for a job and cannot find one. If I had to come up with an educated guess on why the number of stay at home moms is rising I would guess most moms that previously chose to stay home and raise their kids cannot get back into the work force or were unable to find an opening in the first place like your idea of there being higher competition within the work force.
ReplyDeleteI related to this topic greatly, growing up my mom was a stay at home mom. She wanted to raise me and my brothers and be around will we grew up. I loved that my mom stayed home even if it did have an impact on the household income. She raised me at home until I was able to stay by myself and take care of myself and then went out and found a job. It's also interesting to see that many moms can't find jobs and that doesn't surprise me. My mom found a job but then lost it a couple years in, I can't believe how high the competition is now a days but I'm glad that my mom stayed home with me and my brothers growing up. Great article Hailey!
ReplyDelete