This word cloud represents a conversation I had with a room full of working women about career, kids, marriage and housework. Is this what’s inside your head?
News and information for smart, busy women
This word cloud represents a conversation I had with a room full of working women about career, kids, marriage and housework. Is this what’s inside your head?
It seems like everyone is talking about working mothers right now. That’s great if it brings attention to the legislation and workplace policies like equal pay, paid sick leave, parental leave, affordable childcare and flexibility that are necessary to improve work life for working parents. And outside of an act of Congress, realize there are some simpler things we can do to make the life of a working mother, and father, more manageable. A working mother is like a circus performer: juggler, tightrope walker, even a clown who paints on a big, fake smile to get through the day. Drop one ball or lose your balance and it can all fall apart. So it’s little things that may seem like minor inconveniences to many, that can create incredible stress for us. For example: Last minute notices from the schools. Nothing strikes fear in the heart of a working mother like the last six weeks of school, except maybe the first six. May and June are packed with school concerts, field trips, projects that require trips to the art supply store and end of year picnics. So when, at the end of May, I needed to book an overnight trip for work, [...]
Via MBA@UNC MBA Online & Women 2.0 Courtesy of the MBA@UNC, the online mba program at the University of North Carolina
At the start of the “Thanksgiving Family Forum,” a GOP primary debate held earlier this month in Iowa, presidential candidate Michele Bachmann walked around the table pouring water for all of her opponents and for Frank Luntz, the debate moderator. When Luntz thanked her, Bachmann laughed and responded, “I’m used to it Frank.” Watch the video here and then ask yourself, was Bachmann’s behavior helpful or harmful? The answer may vary depending on your frame of reference. To some, Bachmann’s action may appear to be a simple, meaningless gesture. She was pouring a glass of water for herself; so why not just pour for the table? After all, it only took a minute or two. It was helpful and only a liberal-leaning blogger could make an issue out of this, right? Not true. I am sure political strategists think Bachmann made a bad move. After all, it doesn’t look very presidential to wait on others. Presidents are served at the table; they don’t do the serving. Now remember: we’ve never had a woman in office. Therefore, what most people consider to look presidential, is going to look like male behavior. And men seem to know that when they are engaged in important [...]
More good news out of Washington (can you believe it?). The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) earlier this week announced new guidelines as part of the Affordable Care Act that require new health insurance plans to cover women’s preventive services including breastfeeding support, domestic violence screening, and contraception – without charging a co-payment or a deductible. HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a statement, “These historic guidelines are based on science and existing literature and will help ensure women get the preventive health benefits they need.” In developing the guidelines, the HHS worked with the Institute of Medicine to do a review of women’s health needs and provide recommendations on preventive measures specifically for women. According to the HHS website, women will have access to the following services without cost-sharing starting in August of next year: well-woman visits; screening for gestational diabetes; human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA testing for women 30 years and older; sexually-transmitted infection counseling; human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) screening and counseling; FDA-approved contraception methods and contraceptive counseling; breastfeeding support, supplies, and counseling; and domestic violence screening and counseling. An amendment to the new regulation allows religious institutions that offer insurance to their employees a choice whether [...]
While we wait for a Supreme Court decision on the Walmart v. Dukes class action suit, here are some other important court cases that impact working women. The Missouri Court of Appeals is allowing Francine Katz, who was the highest ranking woman at Anheuser-Busch, to continue her gender discrimination suit against the brewer. Anheuser-Busch wanted the matter to be dealt with in arbitration. Katz, the former vice president of communications and consumer affairs for the company, has accused Anheuser-Busch of a frat-like, locker-room atmosphere and of paying her less than her male peers. Katz was paid 50 percent less than her male predecessor and learned that every male member of the company’s strategy committe was classified as a Tier I officer, but both women on the committee were Tier II officers. Several months ago, employees at Bayer Pharmaceutical filed a discrimination case against the company for unfair policies around “pay, promotions and pregnancy leave” and for creating a hostile work environment. The suit was originally filed by six female employees and then expanded to include all female sales representatives and women in the Bayer Healthcare Consumer Care unit. The women say Bayer ignored their complaints. One incident cited in the suit is garnering media [...]
I cried a little today. I needed to vent some frustration. I am frustrated because this Friday is the summer concert at my children’s school and I just found out. I may ask for some flex time to attend, even though it’s short notice, but my top priority is my daughter’s theatre performance. I wasn’t able to attend her fall performance due to short notice and a lack of flexibility at the time. And so I really want to attend the end of year show. If I can only attend one event, that would be my choice. It’s not just working parents who miss out when they can’t get to school events. If you’ve ever watched a child on a school stage scan the audience anxiously looking for parents and then waving and smiling when they are spotted, you understand how important family involvement is to a child. Schools constantly remind us to take an active role in our children’s education – that involvement should extend beyond academics. I may be able to attend both the concert and the theatre show – depending on what time of day they take place and how busy I am at work. The problem [...]
Dissatisfaction. You can sense it everywhere. The office, the playground, the wine bar, those hideous home shopping parties. But nobody talks about it. We touched on it here: “Like many 40-something, middle class women, my life looks good on paper. And it is…I have no reason, no right really, to complain…But I’m so tired all the time. I go from home to work and back again with barely any time to think… . I am fueled by two pots of coffee and a modest dose of Prozac every day yet I still can’t get out of my rut.” Women rarely give voice to the feelings. We think we must be spoiled – aren’t we lucky to even have these problems? But we’re wondering if this is all there is. Did we pursue the wrong goals? What can we do about it now? We’ve already invested so much. But we are the lucky ones – the women who can have a career, a family, and pursue personal passions- so why aren’t we satisfied? Undecided: How to Ditch the Endless Quest for Perfect and Find the Career and Life–That’s Right for You, a new book by Barbara Kelley and Shannon Kelley, explores “choice overload,” [...]
A new report from McKinsey& Company titled, “Unlocking the full potential of women in the U.S. economy,” delivers little we didn’t already know about why women aren’t advancing to the tops of organizations but it offers great analysis on why we should care. The global management consulting firm surveyed 2,500 men and women and interviewed 30 chief diversity officers and experts about why highly capable and motivated women reject top positions in organizations and either pursue jobs outside corporations or leave corporate America altogether. A key objective of the report, however, was to understand how women contribute to the U.S. economy. The lack of women at the top isn’t a recruitment problem. It’s a retention problem. There is a healthy pipeline of talented and ambitious women. Last year 50 percent of all undergraduate degrees in the U.S. went to women, however only 50 percent of the college educated workforce was made up of women. And companies are good at recruiting women, according to the report. Parental leave, flex schedules, part-time options all make work more appealing for women. But what’s happening is women are dropping off at each rung on the corporate ladder. According to Sylvia Hewlett, from the Center [...]
The number of women in the senior ranks of companies worldwide is decreasing, not increasing as one might expect. According to a report from consulting firm Grant Thornton International, the number of women in senior management positions globally has gone from 24 percent in 2004 to 20 percent in 2009. What gives? Well, change is slow. Very slow, sometimes. In fact, here in the U.S., in ten years, the percentage of female corporate officers in Fortune 500 companies grew only 2 percent, to 14 percent total. The percentage of female board directors grew just four percent, to 16 percent. And the percentage of women who are among the top earners, increased from 12 percent to 14 percent. (Source: Catalyst) A new report from the Center for Gender in Organizations (CGO) at the Simmons School of Management, “Closing the Women’s Leadership Gap:Who Can Help?,” looks at the factors contributing to the gap and at what can be done to shrink it. The CGO surveyed more than 300 women at the 2010 Simmons Leadership Conference and found that more than 90 percent of the respondents report experiencing “second generation,” or subtle discrimination at work. According to the press release, announcing the report’s availability, [...]
Does it come in my size?
Trent Franks Plans to Expand Abortion Ban Nationwide
Memo from the media: you're not thin enough
