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The findings of The Shriver Report: A Woman’s Nation Changes Everything have caused quite a stir here at BlogHer. I recently connected with Maria Shriver only days before The Women’s Conference-- to learn more about what it means to live in A Woman’s Nation – where, for the first time in our nation’s history, women make up half of the country’s workforce and are the primary or co-breadwinners in two-thirds of American families.
Erin Kotecki Vest: Where do women flourish?
Maria Shriver: Women are flourishing in the workforce as never before in our nation’s history. One-half of all U.S. workers are women, and women are the primary or co-breadwinners in two-thirds of American families. But, despite this seismic shift, our nation’s institutions – government, business, education, faith and media – have not caught up with the realities of the American family. Women may be flourishing in the workplace, but, on the equality front, from equal pay to family policies, there is still a long way to go. My hope is that The Shriver Report: A Woman’s Nation Changes Everything will ignite a much-needed national dialogue on what has to happen next.
Erin Kotecki Vest: Work-life balance is something we hear about all the time at BlogHer. What did your study find?
Maria Shriver: In our report, at The Women’s Conference and around kitchen tables across America, women - and men – are talking about how stressed they feel, particularly when it comes to financial security. Most families need two paychecks. However women, despite their increasing work responsibilities, still see themselves, as society does, as the primary caretakers of their children and their aging parents. This situation is made even more difficult because so many companies and institutions are not being responsive. We need more flexible work schedules, better child care and paid family and medical leave. It’s time to start thinking about “women’s” issues as “family” issues. Women say they are afraid to ask for time off or more flexible hours to deal with the demands of childcare or elder care. This is one of the reasons why so many women would like to leave their companies and start their own businesses. In fact, the number of women working for themselves doubled from 1979 to 2003 with women making up 35% of all self-employed people. So, yes, the struggle to resolve work-life balance issues is paramount right now in the lives of American women. We’ve found that the life balance articles on The Women’s Conference website are consistently amongst our most popular. Women are looking for guidance on how to best cope.
Erin Kotecki Vest: At BlogHer we have many different "voices" of women- all with different priorities and issues. Is it tough to narrow down some of the biggest issues facing women today or did you see a common thread?
Maria Shriver: The common thread is that women today feel that never before has so much been asked of them, and never before have they given so much. And they are concerned about the impact this is having on their families. When The Women’s Conference sold out in just a couple of hours last year, it hit me that something profound was happening. Women were telling me that they felt increasingly isolated, stressed and misunderstood. They felt that the government, businesses, institutions and the media were all out-of-touch with who they are today and what they need to survive and prosper. The voices of these women – from all walks of life - were the genesis of our report. I must point out that men are certainly doing more to share in the responsibilities. One of our more interesting findings was that the battle of the sexes is over and has been replaced by negotiations -- about work, family, household responsibilities, childcare and eldercare. And men agree with women that it’s time for our institutions to step up to the plate and respond to the needs of the American family as it exists today. The emergent economic power of women is not going away and it gives us a seat at the table – at the head of the table.
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