Dual earner households: womens financial contributions after the birth of the first child.

The stereotype of the post-industrial family with the husband as breadwinner and the wife as full-time housewife no longer accords with reality except for a short period of the life cycle. In most households both husband and wife are likely to be employed outside the home for a large proportion of their lives. This chapter examines a particular type of dual earner household--one in which both parents are employed full-time after the birth of the 1st child. The study group was composed of 184 households in which women on maternity leave said they were intending to return to work and a group of 60 women not intending to work. The women were interviewed when their children were 5 10-11 18 and 36 months old. The data suggest that women who stay in full-time employment after maternity leave contribute very significantly to household income. On average women resuming employment were earning 80% of their husbands earnings with little difference between women in higher and lower status occupations. To put it another way they contributed 44% of total net household income. Mens earnings were more likely to pay for housing regular bills and the car and women were more likely to use their money for shopping the children and child care. Women in lower status jobs tended to place greater emphasis on the instrumental aspects of employment namely money than women in high status jobs. The situation for women in high status jobs is rather different. Even though many said they went back for the money for the majority this was not their 1st priority. These women placed greater importance on the expressive parts of their work the interest of the job and personal fulfillment. If women see themselves as working mainly for the interest of the job they may more easily be persuaded to see their financial contributions as less important to the household than those of their husbands especially if husbands also have high status jobs. Since women regard the dual earner pattern as consequent on their decisions alone the costs of both parents working fall to them. This charge on their earnings is 1 way in which womens contributions to the household are marginalized.