Women’s Earnings Never Really Recover After They Have Children

By the time they hit their mid-30s, women raised on the expectation of “having it all” often face a rude reality: There are only so many hours in the day. Juggling full-time jobs, young children and household tasks leaves scores of women burned out and exhausted. Corinne Low, a professor of business economics and public policy at the Wharton School, calls this familiar phenomenon “the squeeze.” It shows up clearly in time use data the US government collects from households, she says: “You see just this mountain in child care and housework time at the same time ...