After having her first child in 2015, certified public accountant Katie Thomas faced the difficult choice between prioritizing her career or her family.
Following a layoff six months after giving birth, Thomas started her own business for more flexibility in balancing caregiving and work. However, after reentering the workforce full-time a few years later, she found herself working long hours and feeling burnt out, especially after welcoming her second child.
Realizing that she was sacrificing time with her children for work, Thomas decided to take a step back and reassess her priorities. This common dilemma faced by many working mothers in the U.S. highlights the ongoing struggle of balancing career and family responsibilities.
Experts refer to this challenge as the “motherhood penalty,” which results in mothers earning significantly less than fathers. A recent analysis of Census data shows that in 2023, mothers earned 31% less than fathers, impacting their long-term financial stability and ability to achieve financial goals.
We still have women doing a disproportionate amount of care work. As long as that’s going to continue to happen, and as long as there are perceptions that care work is women’s work, we are going to continue to see a motherhood penalty.
— Yana Rodgers, Faculty Director of the Center for Women and Work at Rutgers University
Key takeaways
- In 2023, full-time working mothers with children under 18 earned $55,276, while their male counterparts earned $72,280. That gap translates to a loss of roughly $1,400 a month or $17,000 annually for mothers.
- There is no “penalty” for men when it comes to parenthood. Full-time working fathers with children under 18 make roughly 23 percent more than full-time working men with no children under 18: $72,280 vs. $58,864, respectively.
- Full-time working mothers with children under 18 are more likely than full-time working fathers with children under 18 to say money (53%), parenting (36%), and chores/household obligations (29%) negatively affect their mental health, at least occasionally, according to Bankrate’s 2024 Mental Health and Money Survey.
How much does the motherhood penalty cost women?
Despite making gains in education and the workplace, women — especially mothers — still face an uphill battle in a pay gap that has shown little improvement over the last 20 years.
Using Census Bureau’s 2023 Current Population Survey, Bankrate analyzed the median annual earnings among seven groups of full-time working men and women. We took into account women and men of various marital statuses, as well as whether they have or don’t have children under 18 in their households, to accurately analyze the motherhood penalty.
Experts say the motherhood penalty is a significant contributor to the overall pay gap between men and women. Women working full time, year-round earn 84 cents for every dollar their male counterparts earn, according to latest estimates from the Census Bureau. That pay gap narrows for single women with no children and widens for mothers, according to Bankrate’s analysis.
“If you look at the gap between childless men and childless women, it’s still larger than it should be, but they’re pretty close together in terms of what their wages look like,” says Dr. Joy Misra, provost sociology and public policy professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Mothers and fathers have the widest pay gap
Among the groups we analyzed, no pay gap is wider than between working mothers and fathers. In 2023, full-time working mothers with children under 18 earned a median salary of $55,276, while full-time working fathers with children under 18 earned $72,280, resulting in a monthly loss of roughly $1,400 for mothers and an annual loss of $17,000. Over a 30-year career, this wage gap could lead to mothers losing up to $510,000 in earnings.
The motherhood penalty starts even before women have children, possibly due to taking on more unpaid labor at home. Women initially earn less, but the gap narrows when they are single with no children. However, once they get married and have children, the wage gap widens significantly.
Mothers often take on lower-paying jobs with more flexibility after becoming parents, leading to the motherhood penalty. This is exacerbated by the uneven distribution of care work at home, where women typically shoulder more caregiving responsibilities than men.
In contrast, fathers experience a “fatherhood bonus” in terms of wages after having children, with full-time working fathers earning 23% more than men without children. This wage gap between fathers and non-fathers can result in over $400,000 difference in earnings over 30 years.
Single full-time working women with children under 18 also face a significant pay gap compared to single fathers, earning roughly 20% less. This wage gap can amount to around $265,000 in lost earnings for single working mothers over three decades.
Exceptions to the motherhood penalty analysis include instances where mothers earned more than women without children, likely due to age differences in the data. The impact of the motherhood penalty on career progression can hinder a woman’s growth and advancement in the workplace. The motherhood penalty often leads to mothers being overlooked for promotions or settling for jobs they are overqualified for in order to balance their careers and caregiving responsibilities. This can have a significant impact on their lifetime earnings and career progression, as they may face perceptions of being incapable, distracted, or less committed to their jobs.
For example, Thomas, a 39-year-old mother of two, could be leading a finance team at a large company by now but chose to take a new job that was fully remote, offered flexible hours, and had more family-friendly policies, even though it was a step down in terms of qualifications and pay. Similarly, Alivia, a 31-year-old new mom, may have to leave the workforce in the future to align her work hours with her child’s school schedule.
The financial strain caused by the motherhood penalty can lead to increased stress and difficulty in saving for emergencies or retirement. Working mothers often struggle to balance their careers, finances, and families, leading to heightened levels of financial stress compared to fathers. It is crucial for working moms to take steps to alleviate financial stress and achieve financial security, such as budgeting effectively, saving for retirement, and building emergency funds for different purposes. Negotiating your salary and benefits is crucial for advocating for yourself in the workplace, especially as a woman. Many successful female professionals find it challenging to ask for higher pay or additional benefits, but it is essential to ensure you are fairly compensated and have access to necessary perks from the start.
Researching the salary range for your job title, experience level, and location is a crucial first step in the negotiation process. It is also beneficial to connect with industry peers to gain a better understanding of prevailing salary ranges. Armed with this market research, prioritize your needs and bring them to the negotiation table. This approach could lead to a higher salary, signing bonus, increased flexibility to work from home, or other valuable benefits.
It is important to remember that most recruiters expect candidates to negotiate, and women often miss out on opportunities by accepting the initial offer without question. By advocating for yourself and asking for what you deserve, you can potentially secure a better deal and set the tone for your future growth and satisfaction in the workplace.