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It's the question that keeps on asking. Are moms discriminated in the workplace? Or, is it just another femi-nazi whine?
In writing about this issue,Diane Danielson of The
Women's Dish refers to a column by Ellen Goodman who shared the findings of a experiment by Cornell University sociologist Shelley Correll.
She and her colleagues at Cornell University created an ideal job applicant with a successful track record, an uninterrupted work history, a boffo resume, the whole deal.
Then they tucked a little telltale factoid into some of the resumes with a tip-off about mom-ness. It described her as an officer in a parent-teacher association. And -- zap -- she was mommified.
Moms were seen as less competent and committed. Moms were half as likely to be hired as childless women or men with or without kids. Moms were offered $11,000 less in starting pay than non-moms. And, just for good measure, they were also judged more harshly for tardiness.
Danielson wasn't the only blogger citing Goodman's column. Catherine Price of Salon.com's Broadstreet also wrote about mommification.
Said Correll, "Just the mention of the PTA had that effect ... Imagine the effect of a two-year absence from the workforce or part-time work."
Frankly, I don't want to. It strikes me as crazy that an allusion to motherhood would have such a deep impact on the way a woman was professionally treated. After all, Correll was comparing these mothers not only with childless women but with fathers. That means the discrimination is not just based on parenthood but on the gender of the parent. Despite all our talk of equality in child raising, men are still thought of as putting their jobs above their families, while women are assumed to shirk professional responsibilities for the sake of their kids. That's unfair both to family-focused fathers and to working mothers, who, as Goodman puts it, are still being "mommified."
What's a working mom to do? According to the folks at Our Bodies Our Blog women do have the option to join MomsRising.org -an organization that advocates for changes in public policy.
"More than 90,000 people have registered, galvanizing around six main issues: family leave, flex time, health insurance, child care, fair wages and children's activities, such as better after-school programs. Their proposals are not new, but together they create a "motherhood" agenda that has attracted a fresh enthusiasm," writes Donna St. George in a profile of MomsRising that was published on Mother's Day.
In that Washington Post article St. George reports,
MomsRising stands out for its working-mother focus and also as an example of new-style, online community organizing. Co-founder Joan Blades also helped launch the liberal group MoveOn.org -- "the great success story of Internet politics," said Michael Cornfield, who wrote a book on the topic.
The group may revive debate on family-friendly issues that have idled in recent years, said Ronnee Schreiber of San Diego State University, who studies women and politics. With Democrats in control of Congress, she said, "I think it could go somewhere."
Meantime,working moms have to deal with the reality of their situation. In reflecting on this issue Diane Danielson wrote,
It reminds me of a passage in that hilarious book, I Don't Know How She Does It by Allison Pearson, where the harried mom has managed to get the kids to school, fake bake a pie for the school event, and make it to the office on time only to be chastised for being distracted, while her male colleague announces he leaving early to do something with his kids, and everyone smiles and says "awwwww, isn't he sweet." I admit, for a funny book, that scene brought me to tears.
Me too.
Elana writes about business culture at FunnyBusiness
