mothers re-entering the workforce

The New York Times recently reported that more stay-at-home mothers are ditching their sweats for suits. In our current recession, many educated women that "opted out" of working to be stay-at-home moms are now dusting off their resumes, due to laid off spouses or tighter financial constraints.

The article is pretty upbeat, showing the resilience and success many women have found in the job market. But it raises an interesting question: Is abandoning a professional path too risky? Always?

This is the argument that Katie Allison Granju makes on her Home/Work blog for Babble. With the divorce rate as staggering as it is, with our economic prosperity obviously uncertain, it's important to consider the long-term ramifications of leaving a stable job behind. Granju uses her own personal experience and anecdotal stories to show the danger in being financially dependent.

I don't think anyone will deny the immeasurable benefits to being able to raise a child. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't fantasize about that opportunity. But in today's world, is it realistic?

Rather than condemning women for following their hearts and staying at home, Granju makes an important argument:

"What would be truly revolutionary would be a real Mother's Movement in this country, in which meaningful grassroots organizing would actually be taken to the voting floor by the women who represent us in Congress and to the boardroom by the female executives in the companies that employ us. Together, as mothers, we should be building support for the family leave, affordable health care, and child care options that would make this entire 'opt out' conversation moot. We need universal, paid family leave that allows one parent sufficient time at home to care for an infant, and we need more career-track, part-time jobs with real benefits, so that women with babies and young children don't have to make a potentially life-altering choice between immediate family needs and longterm financial security. Further, we need a well-coordinated system of public and private childcare that allows the many women who 'opt out' of paying work altogether following the birth of their children - simply because they can't find or pay for acceptable care - to make their choices based on the bigger picture."

Amen sister.

There is nothing more important to the future of our society than quality parenting. We're raising the next generation of doctors, teachers, activists. We're directly shaping the minds that will create innovative inventions and inspirational art. We're recognizing and nurturing their talents, their ambitions. What job is more important?

So why do we struggle? Why do we regularly feel heartbreak and guilt?

The idea of a Mom movement is inspiring, but what Mom has the free time to organize it? What, with our need to make an INCOME and all.

How do you handle the work/home dilemma?