The Motherhood Identity Crisis in Britain
by Elizabeth Kaufman
Women in the westernized world are confronted with a unique set of issues: whether to work when a child, or children, is(are) born. In some countries, like Sweden, it is commonplace for women to work because of the highly socialized society that gives many benefits to working mothers. Other countries seem to be torn between wanting women to work and wanting them to stay home with their children. It appears that Great Britain falls into this latter category.
The story of the working mother in Great Britain is almost bipolar in nature. On the one hand, society is partially socialized and Great Britain has a welfare state, so mothers should hypothetically be able to work guilt-free. On the other hand, a number of factors make such an easy solution much more complicated for the average mother, for a number of reasons.
British women themselves are often one of the biggest complications in becoming a working mother. They often feel that they are trying to do everything at once. Women today are often suffering from “role strain.” A report by the National Family & Parenting Institute found that, since 1994, parents, particularly women, are having significant problems making their own and their children’s lives work smoothly. A different report found that, of 400 women tracked, those who returned to work six to twelve months after giving birth felt uncomfortable about their decision to reenter the labor force.
Perhaps driven by women’s discomfort with returning to the labor force, attitudes within the labor force have been slow to change. It is not uncommon for a pregnant woman to be shut out of a company or out of a promotion. Even when highly educated women do pledge to be full-time workers but have children, they are often passed over for promotions or paid less well than either equally or less qualified males. It seems that the labor market is not ready or willing to accept full-time working mothers for the same value of equally qualified male counterparts.
It seems to reason that part of the problems that private businesses have with women stem from the fact that working mothers are minimally supported by the government, despite the fact that Britain is known for its socialized society. Despite new tax credits and vouchers for families that have working mothers, many find that the help is not enough. There are many instances where a single mother, or even a married mother with a lower-paid spouse would be economically better off staying home with the children. As the costs of quality child-care rise, the opportunity cost of a second (or even first) income is not enough to drive women back into the workforce. Those that are in the workforce are severely constrained by limitations due to childcare. For instance, the mass-produced, cheaper nurseries all close around 6 pm, making it impossible for a working mother to stay late when her coworkers do.
In addition, there are many whom will not even be helped by the new credits. These are the “middle-class poor” who work on decent salaries, but are not eligible for government handouts. Yet these families must still work to balance their budget and cannot afford extra help.
This triumvirate of obstacles, women’s guilt, private attitudes (and inefficiency) as well as minimal help from the government all make being a working mother in Britain a difficult role to undertake. Until all three of the categories make significant attitude and policy changes, the state of affairs will not change and women will continue to face the cycle of difficulties that come with holding a job and raising children.
