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Greetings!
This month, we tip our hats to fathers, without whom we wouldn't be where we are today. While family care is still a predominantly female occupaton, more fathers are more involved, and men's role in the work/family re-organization is beginning to be heard. Amidst all the social change in our lifetimes, one is certainly that the number of single father households with children makes up a greater percentage of single parent households than ever before. More details on that below, plus news about how having a baby could affect your home loan, the universal appeal of flexible workplaces, and the shortcomings of the minimum wage. We also have a suggestion for your summer reading list!
Don't forget to friend the NAMC on Facebook, and friend Valerie Young and Your (Wo)Man in Washington on Facebook, and Twitter, too.
  
Feels like summer is here already.
The mothers of MOTHERS |
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 Vote Your (Wo)man in Washington into The Top 25
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Please take a moment to vote for Your (Wo)Man in Washington in a contest, "Top 25 Political Mom Blogs" sponsored by Circle of Moms. Just click and scroll down to Valerie's picture at Your (Wo)Man in Washington and make your vote. You can vote once a day, every day until June 13. Thanks so much for your support!
Also, If you haven't done so already, check out the latest (Wo)man in Washington blog post. |
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More Single Father Households | | |
 It's always a good time to talk about the role of fathers in the work/family challenges, but especially with Father's Day on the horizon. While the workplace remains structured for a person with no outside obligations, fathers do more hands on parenting than their fathers did. Many say women won't see doors fully opening at work until dads up the ante on the caregiving side, which is happening at a glacial pace. Some changes are happening faster though - mothers are less likely to win sole custody of children in divorce disputes, and single parent families are more frequently headed by fathers, and more socially accepted. Note, though, that single fathers have higher incomes than single mothers. Gender always matters. Read a NY Times blog piece on the issue here.
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| At A Minimum, Minimum Wage No Living Wage | | |
Speaking of single mothers and the economic straits they face, it's an open secret that minimum wage jobs simply won't cover the basic needs of a family. Social scientists have been saying this for quite awhile now, but it's been slow to gain traction due to our cherished American dream of working hard + playing by the rules = security and economic success. The minimum wage is too low in most of the US to cover food, shelter, child care, transportation, and medical care. In Michigan, for example, the minimum wage is $7.40 an hour - yet economists peg the hourly wage needed for a mother to provide food, shelter and clothes alone to her two children at $24.49. If one of the goals of public policy is to support work and self-sufficiency, the minimum wage comes up short. Read more on the topic here. |
| New Baby? No Loan! | | |
Federal regulators have gone after a mortgage company accused of cancelling contracts of homebuyers if they were women and on maternity leave. On the assumption that paid maternity leave amounts to "short-term or temporary disability income", the mortgagor claimed it could not be considered as earned income for purposes of a home loan. Such action violates a federal law, the Fair Housing Act, which prohibits discrimination based on gender, disability, family status, or having children. Parents of new children may be under close scrutiny by lenders adopting more stringent standards, looking at a temporary dip in income as a danger sign, and a reason to refuse a loan. Read more.
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Flexible Work Arrangements NOT Limited to Mothers | | |
For work/family scholars, big box retailer Best Buy has been an industry leader with its "results only work environment", (ROWE) where performance depends on results achieved, not the number of hours worked. Researchers have found that what was thought to be uniquely appealing to mothers of young children is implemented by and yields benefits to the entire workforce, and the bottom line. One reporter observed that "...ROWE reduced turnover across such a broad array of workers. The U of M authors expected that turnover would be reduced mostly among working mothers with young children -- women with great need for workplace flexibility. But the survey-based study found the reduction in turnover across all genders and ethnicities -- and among workers with and without children." The costs of employee turnover and retraining are reduced, and the workers as well as their families and communities reap the rewards. Read more here. |
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Leave Me Alone, I'm Reading | | |
I've read my fair share of baby books and parenting guides, trying to ease my anxiety and curiosity with soothing reassurance from the experts. As much as they helped, I wonder now if they also increased some unrealistic expectations about both my baby and myself as a mother. Maybe a dose of humor would have been just as helpful? Fresh off the press this spring comes Let's Panic About Babies!, a totally irreverent and very funny satire of maternal angst. If you want to step back and have a laugh, check out this review from the Washington Post, or hop over to the Let's Panic web page, which cautions, "This site is for entertainment purposes only....None of the information contained herein should be mistaken for anything real or helpful in any way." Please, someone, send me a copy!
If you've read a book of interest to MOTHERS, let us know! Send along a short review and your opinon to valeriey@motherscenter.org. |
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