Over the past couple of months, I have had several conversations with women in their mid-forties who want to get back into the workforce. They spent 10-15 years raising their kids full time. Their employment record is spotty with some short periods of work or with traditional mom jobs, such as real estate. They want to get back into the workforce, not so much because of economic necessity, but because they need intellectual challenge and hope to make a difference in the world.
Despite the fact that these women were highly educated from elite colleges and had been leaders in their communities for years, they were unable to find work. Their experience leading the PTA was not respected. Their former professions were no longer viable careers; nobody is finding work in journalism these days. They weren't taken seriously by potential employers, because of their age and the gaps on the resume.
What should they do?
These women represent a whole of social capital that is being squandered. They are still extremely intelligent and energetic people; raising kids doesn't make you dumber, although sometimes it feels like it does. It isn't productive to just tell these women, "tough luck."
When someone presents you with a series of bad choices, then you have to create a completely different option. If the current economic climate is inhospitable to women, then you have to be entrepreneurial. The Internet is the ultimate arena for entrepreneurs. Take something that you are passionate about and write about it. A lot. Make it your full time job. Network with others online. Develop an expertise on a particular topic and showcase your expertise on a blog or a website.
The blog or the website might not be the end goal and probably won't lead to much money, but it might lead to other positive outcomes. It could bring potential employers to you. It could raise awareness or donations for causes that are important to you. If you spend six or seven hours a day, writing and reading about a particular topic, you are going to build up an expertise. If you're really good, you'll end up interacting with other people who feel passionately about your passion. And the Internet doesn't give a shit about your age or the gaps on your resume.
Apt. 11d 
The problem is that the same women in the “Woe is me. No one wants to hire a stay-at-home mom after 12 years at home” articles were, 10 years ago, also the women in the “Post-feminist Isn’t it great to get out of the rat race and be a stay-at-home mom” articles.
Nobody ever puts the older mom into the same article as the younger chicken-farming mom to give a “Ghost of Christmas Future” perspective.
LikeLike
So, one could say the same thing about etsy, if your goal was art instead of writing. I am pretty wary about either of those things translating into paid employment. But, they do form a method of capture of the women’s social/intellectual assets, and form a means of intellectual stimulation.
Where I get wary is when people sell (blogging, etsy, graduate school in any certificate field, including much science — though not necessarily engineering) as a means to an end, rather than an end in itself.
LikeLike
“Their experience leading the PTA was not respected.”
My neighbors two doors down have four kids at the same private school ours go to. For some time, his and her volunteer gig was coordinating hot lunch orders for the school (a computerized ordering system, keeping track of physical checks, lots of vendors, paypal, etc.). Anyway, now that the youngest has started school (three days a week), she’s been hired by the school to do three days a week of fundraising work (there’s a remodeling project that we need a million dollars for). I suspect it doesn’t pay a whole bunch, but it’s perfect for her right now.
This isn’t a huge town, and outside the college community, it’s very poor, so I expect it is pretty hard to find white collar employment without some sort of personal in. If, down the road, I am looking for a job job, I expect my husband will have to talk to my husband’s chair. (“Godfather, my wife needs a job.” Although, seriously, the chair is a very nice person.) My youngest starts 5-day kindergarten in the fall and tuition will be kicking up, so I’ve been thinking of getting a babysitting gig (a professor friend just had a baby), rather than anything more serious because: 1. Our family will probably be expanding over the next decade. 2. I see from the third quarter progress report from school that my second grader has missed 26 days of school so far this year.
LikeLike
I’ve also seen someone else go through the model Amy describes — she worked, full time, in the fashion industry (she had a glamour job in her early 20’s, gave it up for an industry job, gave that up when she had her first child). She stayed with them when they were babies, and then volunteered significantly in their pre-school when they were older. When both were in school, she took over management of the pre-school for a year. Then, when she was ready to take on more hours, she worked contacts to find a part time, and then maternity leave replace (i.e. temporary) job back in the fashion industry. After a few insecure temporary gigs, she was eventually hired on. The town she lives in had only two reliable employers, and the one she worked at closed in the time that she was home with her kids.
How could she make it work? Well, she was excellent, someone people can trust to get the job done. And, she was willing to take on the non-glamour jobs in a glamour industry (i.e. coordinate the application for sleeping bag permits in 50 states, rather than design the pretty patterns for the clothes). And, she didn’t come back to work expecting that the work would seamlessly fit around her family life. She’s also very efficient and organized, a skill that I know I lack, and that I admire when I see it in operation. There are some people who manage their time better than others. Oh, and her time out of the workforce was 5 years, rather than 15.
LikeLike
Bleh, story of my life right now and I’ve only been non full-time for 1.5 years. Yes, I own a company, a company that’s seen no work for 9 months. Yes, I worked two part-time teaching jobs, but it’s still damn hard to find good work. I am continuing to try to build up work for the company, but anything I do now might not pay off for 3-4 months. And if I do take another job, I’m not sure if I could take on consulting work. Also, I’ve packed my summer with trips. Painted myself in a corner, really.
It would be great to earn money from my book or from writing for the web, but I’m not holding my breath that I’d make enough to pay for the remodeling projects we want to do and the college educations we need to save for. Thus, keeping my options open, including having my husband do some legwork with his many contacts, and already he has a promising lead.
My own mom was able to go back to teaching high school after about ten years, but really, she got lucky when the French teacher at the high school moved to administration. She’d already been a regular substitute so it was easy enough to plug her into the class full time. And I think on-ramping, whether it’s via entrepreneurial outlets or through “regular” jobs requires a lot of hard work and a little bit of luck.
LikeLike
Whatever the solution, I don’t think it’s hopeless. If there’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s people who go, “I give up. It’s no use. Poor little me. Wah, wah wah, I’ll never ever find another job ever ever ever because I’m too old. Wah.”
Lots of people career-switch, lots of people leave dying industries, lots of people found their own businesses. I’m doing a combination of all three (though I don’t have kids). Maybe some of these moms need to take a look at re-credentialing, maybe getting a master’s in something more relevant, getting a foot in the door through temp work? Whatever, I don’t think blogging or Etsy is the solution for everyone. But giving up is certainly not the solution.
By the way, I’ve found that local Chambers of Commerce and SCORE give classes in how to start your own business, and Women’s Initiative for Self-Employment does too (I’ve taken their classes and highly recommend them).
I sound a bit more like a hard-hearted conservative than I really am 🙂 but this is not just a “mommy track” issue. The work world is no longer a forty-years-and-a-gold-watch place, where you start in your 20’s and work at one company/job until you retire. Nor are as many women in pink-collar jobs that allowed for time off to raise kids (teaching being one example). Industries are dying, new industries (hello, biotech) are springing up. We’re all going to be faced with the career-changing dilemma in one way or another.
LikeLike
Good advice, Allurophile and all. I agree that giving up isn’t helpful and that the well-worn paths are the easier route to employment. I know so many people who were formerly in academia, journalism, and publishing, so the Internet is an obvious path for them.
And completely agree that this isn’t just a women’s or mom issue. We are in the midst of a major shift in the economy. Old routes to employment are being closed off to everyone. Half the population may need job re-training. We all need to go back to school for biotech stuff, I guess.
LikeLike
Maybe some of these moms need to take a look at re-credentialing, maybe getting a master’s in something more relevant…
There are now a bunch of people with actual relevant master’s degrees working in jobs similar to my own. The school keeps spitting them out.
LikeLike
Oh, I agree, about not giving up, to getting what you want. I also think it’s important to tell the stories of how people made stuff work for them, the ones who stayed, and the ones who stayed.
Biotech is certainly not the answer. I point it out — relates to Tim’s comment below. We’re moving to a world where everyone will need to be entrepreneurial.few people are going to be able to slot themselves into a predictable careeer path.
LikeLike
Lest I sound flip, reading Geekymom’s comment, I can appreciate how hard it is to start up one’s own business vs. getting a new job. I’m going through this myself with a major client NOT paying and incommunicado. Argh!
Working a job, it’s easy to get spoiled, in a way. You work for, say, Chevron, and you know Chevron will pay you twice a month, will do the hard work of getting new clients and also wangling money out of the ones who don’t want to pay, Chevron will be balancing the books, etc. In so many ways it’s a lot easier to work for someone else. However, a survey reproduced on Yahoo noted that the most satisfied workers were those who owned their own businesses – 75% of business owners liked their work and what they were doing.
Biotech, of course, is not the only career path out there, I merely pointed it out as something that didn’t really exist until recently. Neither did smart phones. (I remember watching the original Star Trek and thinking how neat those “communicators” were! Little did I know that I would one day be using one of those nifty devices by another name.) “Green technology” has only recently become a buzzword. On the other hand, would anyone have predicted, one hundred and fifty years ago, that there would be no such things as “carters” or “wheelwrights” or “wagoners” outside of Colonial Williamsburg?
For better or (or/and) worse, most of us are going to have to be entrepreneurs in one way or another. The “job” as we know it is dying.
LikeLike
“If there’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s people who go, “I give up. It’s no use. Poor little me. Wah, wah wah, I’ll never ever find another job ever ever ever because I’m too old. Wah.”
Amen. Here’s what my dad is up to at 60-something, out in the wilds of Washington (with my mom’s help for 2 and 3 and his sister/ coauthor’s help with 3):
1.cattle ranching (since childhood)
2.t-shirt/tourist store (for the past 20 years)
3.writing/editing/publishing/distributing local interest books (for the past 5 or so years)
4.teaching a couple of math courses at the community college extension (this is first year back after a 10 year hiatus)
There were quite a number of dead ends between the late 60s and now, but if you are always doing 3 or 4 things at a time that you like and that all make money, something will work out. My parents are even talking about launching another major venture over the next few years.
LikeLike
Laura, right now I am wondering why I went to graduate school at such a young age? Yes, I am a better parent because of all my knowledge and skills and can impress at cocktail parties, but I wonder if it was worth the time and money. At this point in my life my work experience in my 20s and my degree from an impressive university count for nothing in my job search. Zilch. I cannot even get an interview for the exact same entry level job I had when I got out of grad school. Neither the job nor the technology have changed much since I first held the job. I was damn good at it then and I would be damn good at it now. And no, I did not ask for job flexibility. My degree and school did not even matter when I applied to graduate school this winter. At first I was sad, now I’m insulted. Just in case my graduate degree from the UofC was a fluke, I’m expected to take classes at my local state university THEN apply to the graduate program (a two year MA program with an average of two classes per semester I might add).
On the brighter side of things. After a full year of trying to find meaningful work (I am the real estate agent Laura mentioned), I may have found an employment possibility, at least temporarily. Working as a substitute teacher ($75/day), I am currently working a two-week gig in 8th grade history and find it enjoyable. I plan to take the exams for Massachusetts certification in middle school humanities next month. The job market in teaching is competitive right now, but I figure why not give it a shot.
My question now is what do I tell my 17 year old daughter? She is off to college in the fall and has her life neatly mapped out. Four years of college, then off the UofC for grad school, just like mom and dad. A part of me is proud that she wants to parallel my life, but another part of me wants to tell her to skip grad school and save herself some time and money.
LikeLike
Yeah, I’ve had those same issues, Tina. After I left you and Sly at the Univ of Chicago, I took a year off and then spent another 8 years in grad school and then countless years doing part time teaching and unpaid research to keep myself in the game, only to find a bleak employment situation. I would have better off working as a secretary all those years and building up retirement money. But whatever. It’s not just women and moms who are in this situation. I have a lot of academic friends who are starting over right now. The one good thing is that your education and experience will feed into the next occupation you go into. When you get your teaching certification, your salary will be higher than other new teachers. You’ll be an excellent teacher, because of your experience in grad school and as a mom. My husband switched careers entirely in his mid-30s and his PhD helped him enormously in formal and informal ways.
What to tell your daughter? Have her choose a career that pays very well and has lots of opportunities. Some careers are more open to moves in and out of the workforce. She’ll have to do her homework to find out what occupations are the best for that. Most importantly, she should choose a good partner (like you did) who’ll support her decisions and be involved in parenting. While having a career is a good thing, having a good life is a better thing — sometimes a career doesn’t work out and you just have to roll with the punches.
Tina, you’re in a tough spot right now. You’re hitting all the obstacles, but you’re smart and determined enough to get past them. Once you land that first job, you’re going to do just fine.
LikeLike
J.D. Roth of Get Rich Slowly is running a video contest, and one of the entries is relevant:
http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2010/04/11/grs-video-contest-update-and-pr-week/
In the second video in the post, Elizabeth explains how her photography hobby has created an income stream so that she gets $200-$300 a month in royalties from a stock photo site, even when she hasn’t done any new work that month. She suggests using the same model (selling the same thing multiple times, rather than selling one thing one time) to do things like sell knitting patterns or upload a song your band has done to itunes.
LikeLike
” She suggests using the same model (selling the same thing multiple times, rather than selling one thing one time) to do things like sell knitting patterns or upload a song your band has done to itunes.”
The problem with that model, is that most people in creative fields want to spend their time creating, not selling, or figuring out what sells. True, a big hit can give the space to create, but it’s inherently a different model from being paid to do something you find creative (write, research, design, opinionated).
And it leaves those of us looking for unique writing, research, design, opinions, rather than popular ones unsatisfied.
LikeLike