It’s still not easy being a woman these days.
Even though women are earning more college degrees than ever, finding the balance between career climbing and happy mothering still remains a tough challenge. Women’s wages have been steadily climbing over the last few decades, but their salary is still only 77 percent of their male peer’s salary. When families are deciding who stays home with the children, stay-at-home dads are still a small minority compared to the percentage women who stay at home with their children.
Today’s women are high achievers working hard in the workplace and at home. Compared to men they choose to take fewer breaks at the office. They’re less likely than their male peers to take a walk or go out for lunch. According to Pew Research in 2011, mothers are still completing more housework in the home than fathers.
The saying “the grass is always greener on the other side” applies to working mothers and stay at home mothers, statistically speaking. Almost half of the stay at home moms want to work outside the home, but they can’t afford the child care it costs to do so. Likewise, almost half of working mother wish they could stay home but they need the extra income for the household budget.
Less than 5 percent of women hold Fortune 500 CEO positions, compared to their male counterparts. Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer of Facebook, thinks this imbalance is because of sexism and discrimination in the workplace. The author of “Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead” also says that there’s an ambition gap between men and women today. Once a woman begins to think about having children, she doesn’t compete the way her male peers do.
Anne-Marie Slaughter’s article, “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All,” featured in The Atlantic stirred up a heated discussion in the summer of 2012. She reflects back on her experience saying our society must value a fulfilling home life the way we value a fulfilling professional life.
Source: Great Business Schools
