Women Working? Did it work?

VaughanJB

VaughanJB

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Controversial, but why not? So what are peoples opinion on this?

Back in ye olde days, the expectation was that men left the home and worked (be the provider) and the woman stayed at home and looked after the house/family.

This changed, and women were introduced into the work place. Two incomes were better than one, and wealth was created.

Update to today, and even if both the man and the woman are working, there may not be enough income to support a household.

From a personal standpoint, women's emancipation from the home, and reliance on a man, was/is a great thing. But from a wealth perspective, it's not really worked out for the family. Today, to even try and get ahead, both the man and woman MUST go to work.

What went wrong? Did anything go wrong?
 

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VaughanJB said:
Controversial, but why not? So what are peoples opinion on this?

Back in ye olde days, the expectation was that men left the home and worked (be the provider) and the woman stayed at home and looked after the house/family.

This changed, and women were introduced into the work place. Two incomes were better than one, and wealth was created.

Update to today, and even if both the man and the woman are working, there may not be enough income to support a household.

From a personal standpoint, women's emancipation from the home, and reliance on a man, was/is a great thing. But from a wealth perspective, it's not really worked out for the family. Today, to even try and get ahead, both the man and woman MUST go to work.

What went wrong? Did anything go wrong?
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I think that many people's expectations have become greater or even unrealistic.
 

Expectations have become much higher. When we bought our first house in 1979 my husband was working a full-time job and a part-time job. I stayed home with the three kids and we bought a very old house that needed a lot of work. For the first few years, we couldn’t even afford to buy the paint to paint the inside. Through the years, we fixed up the house ourselves gradually as we could afford to pay cash. We also paid cash for my BA degree and both my masters.

We had two old cars that my husband fixed himself and usually only one was running. He would take the car to work and the kids said I would either walk or take the bus if we needed to go somewhere. I swapped clothes with friends for the kids, used cloth diapers and our furniture was hand-me-downs from parents and grandparents.

Younger people want everything that their parents have now. They don’t want to sacrifice and save for the future. It’s great that women can work and are able to be independent, from men because otherwise they get trapped in abusive marriages where they can’t escape.

Still if you have both parents working full-time and have children they need decent childcare, before and after school care and both parents need to share the workload. Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen and 90% of the homework workload still falls to the women studies show.
 
My mom worked her whole life, at least until she was 65. She reached a point after I got out of high school that she no longer had to work, but she like her job and the extra income so she worked until my dad and her could retire.

My wife worked for the first ten years of our marriage. She then was able to stop working and never looked back. It all depends on the family's income and what the woman wants/ needs to do.
 
IMO it’s all about choices and priorities.

I believe that it’s still possible to live a 1940s or 1950s lifestyle in 2025 if you are content with a lower standard of living, fewer possessions, simpler homes, etc…

In my experience my parents and grandparents did much more self help work and shared various skills among family and friends as opposed to having to purchase various goods and services.

It’s still a valuable practice to cultivate skills like sewing, carpentry, auto repair, etc… that may potentially save money as opposed to hobbies like skiing and golf that cost money.
 
Women have worked outside the home in my family for a couple of generations. Mostly teachers and nurses with college degrees. 😎

So, today would the men working from home for a company, be considered working outside the home? Does the home office exempt them? Is the home office sovereign territory? :LOL:

I think WW2 brought change since women had to work outside the home, doing traditional men jobs, to keep the country going. 🥰

Many young couples have trouble making ends meet with two incomes. :(

Working outside the home, since 16, is what kept me going during divorce. Also the two incomes allowed me to have a great second marriage. :love:
 
VaughanJB said:
Back in ye olde days, the expectation was that men left the home and worked (be the provider) and the woman stayed at home and looked after the house/family.
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What in your opinion is "ye olde days"? Are we talking pre-industrial age? I'm thinking blacksmiths and laundresses? Field worker and tapestry weavers?

It would be interesting to see a breakdown by half century or so. A lot of times it seems like 'ye olde days' means our own young childhood, colored by our particular country/culture/economic level.

This is the biblical time frame idea of women's economic role:
The passage that best captures the essence of a woman's work in the marketplace is found in Proverbs 31:24, which states:​
"She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies the merchants with sashes". ​
This verse from the description of the virtuous woman in Proverbs 31 highlights several aspects of a woman's engagement in the marketplace:​
  • Production and Trade: She is not merely a consumer but an active producer, making valuable goods like linen garments and sashes. Linen was a valuable commodity in ancient times, requiring skill to produce.
  • Engagement with Merchants: She interacts directly with merchants, selling her goods and participating in the economy beyond her household.
  • Business Acumen and Resourcefulness: This demonstrates her wisdom and strategic thinking in managing her resources and ensuring her products reach a wider market.
This passage provides a positive example of a woman who is both diligent and business-savvy, contributing to her family and community through her work in the marketplace. It challenges the idea that women's roles are confined solely to the domestic sphere and highlights their valuable contribution to economic life.​
 
One of my grandmothers never worked outside the home. My other grandmother had a job in a factory assembling something for the war effort for about a year. It was considered your "patriotic duty" to do that if you could. Other than that, she only sold jewelry at home parties.

My mom, on the other hand, mostly worked from the time she graduated from high school until she retired. She took a year or two off while we were small but mostly worked once we were all in school.

I can remember being 18 and working at a job, sitting and talking to my coworkers and we were discussing whether it was easier to be a guy or a girl. It was agreed that it was easier to be a guy, because they could take the initiative and ask a girl out and, also, can you imagine having to work for the rest of your life to support a family??? Sigh. How naive we were...... I'm pretty sure the vast majority of those youngsters I was sitting with that day worked for the rest of their employable days.
 
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Well I thought previously that it was not possible unless you were very highly skilled/paid to have a one income family. However when I moved temporarily to Yakima I found out that I was wrong.

At the time in Vancouver Washington you could rent a studio apartment for about $1, 100-$1,500 a month. Up in Yakima you could rent a two-bedroom house. While you had probably 30% of the entertainment collective up in Yakima you also had prices and cost that were more in line.

You had less jobs in certain areas, but more in others. I looked at some states, 4 months ago. Hell, you could BUY a house in some states that needed work, but went for $80-$200K 2, 3 and 4 bdrm with yards and not even close to Chicago.

But people want a nice (White?) neighborhood, updated housing and affordable (to their desires) and if they don't get it, they'll complain on social media how unfair it all is.
 
Jules said:
Many women want to work. It’s not the money, they enjoy it.
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for the same reasons men want to work - independence, hopefully a job you enjoy, as well as money.

or don't for periods of time - ie either parent these days could be the one at home. Or a mixture of both - ie work part time

Other than about 4 years of being a full time parent, I have always worked - sometimes part time. Still am working 4 days/week

My mother went back to work after the children were all at school. I remember my grandmother working, not sure when she went back to work but she then worked until retirement age.

women working isnt a new thing - what is relatively new is women being paid same as men for same job and having equal workplace opportunities
 
Women used to run the Community.

Now THAT was power! Now Bylaw Officers run amok in our communities loaded for bear handing out cat fines.

My mother loved being a 'home maker' as she called herself. There was a deal. Dad would bring home the bacon, and Mom would look after the household.

The Feminists were great for a small percentage of career-driven women...but left the majority of women who would rather be at home in their nest...in the dust.
 
Beezer said:
The Feminists were great for a small percentage of career-driven women...but left the majority of women who would rather be at home in their nest...in the dust.
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I disagree.

Things we take for granted now, like equal pay and equal job opportunities- they benifit all women, not just those in high driven careers. That's great for everyone.

And I doubt the majority of women would rather be stuck at home forever - and those who want to and can afford it, still can

As could a man in same circumstances.
 
I always worked but I found it really difficult to put my son in daycare. When he was about 5, a house came on the market on the next street. My Mom called, looked, made offer was and accepted.

She became the Mom after school. His elementary is 4 houses from our house. I walked him to school in the morning. Her house was one street over, on the corner. She just had to cross the street to get him.

Had I not worked we would have not been able save to afford this house, this neighborhood. We would have not been able to put money away for retirement.

You work so hard to reach your goals. Wanted a big house for more kids, none came. Husband passed at 51, cancer. Big house still good, had rooms for Mom when she got sick. Retirement savings good. Am alone but should not have any financial worries if I am careful.

With the economics of today, the cost of living, real estate, health insurance, child care, food, just everything. I know my son and his family is struggling. I know they can make it with hard work and careful attention to "needs and wants".

IMO there will never be in the future that women married to the average male will be able to be a SAHM. I was lucky and long periods of employment. I had earned a lot of vacation time, so I was always available for school activities. Unfortunatley, my husband missed a lot of the early years of his son's life. I am hoping that our young male population will focus more on learning a trade. They can provide a steady good income for a family. Not everyone can be the next internet sensation!
 
January said:
And I doubt the majority of women would rather be stuck at home forever
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I think most women want to be at home with their youngsters...not 'stuck'...and not 'forever'.
 

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