It’s being called “the motherhood penalty.” A new study says women are delaying having children because of it.
So, what is it? The UK think-tank called Onward released a study that claims that most women would like to have two or three children, but the average number of children born to UK moms is just 1.5. They say the reason for this is the so-called “motherhood penalty.” In plain terms, the cost of childcare for working mothers, and what’s vaguely described as “lack of financial support,” is causing some mothers to have fewer children because it is simply unaffordable.
The group wants the government to step in, unsurprisingly. They’re calling on UK regulators to double the time period in which new mothers can get higher pay under UK laws during the maternity period. The group also wants the government to give fathers more “access” to paternity leave. The study showed that mothers who had babies both earned less on a monthly basis, and ended up with lower savings later in life.
The so-called “gender pay gap” has been hotly debated. For example, the common claim that women only make 70 cents on the dollar compared to men is simply untrue when factors such as experience, hours spent working, and the exact positions within a company are accounted for.
Indeed, the Onward study found that young women between the ages of 18 and 21 actually earned slightly more than their male counterparts. But by the time women get to middle age in their 40s, the group claims, they earn 10 percent less than men. Also of concern to Onward is that UK women have only about £69,000 pounds in savings by the time they reach the age of 67, compared to £205,000 pounds for men. It is not clear whether the study accounted for men and women living together and having shared finances, as is most common for married couples.
Like most apparently left-leaning organizations, Onward wants the UK to mimic Scandinavian countries such as Sweden, famous for their extremely generous social benefits compared to other Western nations. Sweden pays mothers and fathers to have babies, which is said to account for the country’s higher birth rate.
The “motherhood penalty” may become the latest feminist talking point, as articles are appearing citing women who claim the alleged penalty is “forcing” them to choose between a career and motherhood.
