Laying Down the Law
Mothers who work in the United Kingdom now have the right to request a flexible work schedule. New legislation requires employers to offer part-time or job sharing opportunities for working moms, according to Scotsman.com.
That sounds like something we should be fighting for over here. Especially when you consider that the Pew Research Center recently found 60 percent of mothers who work full-time say they would prefer part-time work. That was compared to 48 percent a decade ago.
Since the study was released in July, many newspapers and magazines have written stories on how employers are handling women in the workplace. Several large law firms and accounting offices are taking measures to ensure that these highly educated women stay on their career track by offering them part-time opportunities. (Note that a part-time lawyer may drop down to 40 hours a week!)
I applaud these efforts, even if they are only being done to protect the company's investment in these women. Highly educated women must continue to rise to - or stay in - positions of authority.
Yet, I don't see the same efforts being made for the average working mom who also struggles to balance work and family.
The lowest wage earners have it even worse, according to a new study. The Employment Policies Institute finds that the average single mother without a high school diploma experiences a 9 percent drop in income each time the government raises the minimum wage. The drop in pay occurs because hours are shortened or these low-skilled jobs are cut.
Here's the link:
http://news.scotsman.com/opinion.cfm?id=1494332007
That sounds like something we should be fighting for over here. Especially when you consider that the Pew Research Center recently found 60 percent of mothers who work full-time say they would prefer part-time work. That was compared to 48 percent a decade ago.
Since the study was released in July, many newspapers and magazines have written stories on how employers are handling women in the workplace. Several large law firms and accounting offices are taking measures to ensure that these highly educated women stay on their career track by offering them part-time opportunities. (Note that a part-time lawyer may drop down to 40 hours a week!)
I applaud these efforts, even if they are only being done to protect the company's investment in these women. Highly educated women must continue to rise to - or stay in - positions of authority.
Yet, I don't see the same efforts being made for the average working mom who also struggles to balance work and family.
The lowest wage earners have it even worse, according to a new study. The Employment Policies Institute finds that the average single mother without a high school diploma experiences a 9 percent drop in income each time the government raises the minimum wage. The drop in pay occurs because hours are shortened or these low-skilled jobs are cut.
Here's the link:
http://news.scotsman.com/opinion.cfm?id=1494332007
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