Forget the Career Track! Babies Are Where It's At!

By Olivia Leigh in News on Dec 1, 2006 9:18PM

Remember all those articles from several years ago about women who were “doing it all”? Bringing home the bacon and frying it up for hubby and the babes?

In actuality, fewer mothers of young children are working, according to a new study from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which showed an 8 percent drop in work-force participation rates of married mothers of infants from 1997 to 2001, from 59 percent to 51 percent.

If you’re thinking wealthy mothers are the only ones taking job breaks, think again. The new data shows that the trend is wider-reaching than previously thought, with women of all economic and educational levels taking off time, from generally one to three years.

The Sun-Times coverage of the topic featured interviews from moms in Bronzeville and Beverly, who cited the high costs of child care and the desire to care for their children during their crucial first year as major reasons for staying home. Other causes include: poor quality of available child care, lack of extended maternity leave, lack of flexible return-to-work options, and a decision to switch to a more family-friendly career.

The Chicagoist offices have never put our maternity leave policy into use, as all of our female writers are sans child. However, we do have a few guys who have valiantly stepped into the role of Mr. Mom, another trend on the rise. While we can’t imagine toiling with poopy diapers and dribbling mashed carrots on a daily basis, we think it’s pretty admirable that more men and women are taking on the underrated full-time job of stay-at-home parent.