The Globe and Mail

There are many numbers of questions a working mother might ask herself during the course of a typical harried day: Am I going to make this deadline? Have I forgotten an important appointment? Well, here’s a remedy for a restful night: A new study adds to the mounting evidence, “that having a working mother has some economic, educational and social benefits for children of both sexes.” The research, which comes from Harvard University’s new Gender Initiative project, suggests that both male and female children benefit from having mothers who work outside the home. Adult boys of working mothers are more likely to pull their weight when it comes to the monumental bore of domestic chores, and for adult women, the advantage is even more clear-cut: They are more likely to hold supervisory positions, and to earn higher incomes.

In short, “being raised by a working mom leads to much more egalitarian gender attitudes for adults".

Women make up the majority of workers in the minimum-wage and part-time fields. If you’re a mother, particularly a single mother, working in one of these jobs, you don’t have the luxury of feeling guilt. You’re more likely to be worrying about whether you can afford to take a day off with a sick child, or whether you can find a babysitter during your night shift.

The answer may be to stop feeling guilt and start feeling anger over a system that doesn’t change.

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