Tag Archives: motherhood penalty

He’s Doing It: Is Fatherhood Bonus a Motherhood Penalty?

Curt RiceLast week, @UN_Women queried twitter followers, “What is your wish for women around the world in 2012?” I replied, “My wish for women around the world is economic and reproductive justice. Just a small thing…”

One oft-cited variable distinguishing women’s and men’s economic advancement is parenthood. But how accurate are our assumptions? Via twitter also, Curt Rice (@curtrice), Vice President for Research and Development at the University of Tromso in Norway, offered me the opportunity to cross-post his recent pieces on gender parity in academia. The previous week, he had posted on why the so-called motherhood penalty for women. That one won’t surprise you. But the post below tells the other side of the story: fatherhood benefits men’s careers substantially.

Read on and let’s talk about why (and also share your wish for women in 2012):

The fatherhood bonus: Have a child and advance your career

The careers of different men progress at different rates. That’s just as we would expect. Higher performers are rewarded; lower performers slow down. Our accomplishments guide our careers. Good workplaces are meritocracies — do your job well, and you’ll get ahead. That’s what we believe.

Or, at least that’s what we want to believe. But after a few years on the job, we start to wonder. Other factors seem to play a role…

Posted in Gender, Inspiration, Leadership, No Excuses, She's Doing It, Workplace | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment
 
Footer line
Copyright 2010 Gloria Feldt