10 Ways To Support Working Moms

		Agree with your partner how to divide up household and parenting responsibilities. There’s a handy chart here to work from.
		Dads: Do nighttime feedings.
		Use a joint email address for all kid and school activities.
		Dads: Take paternity leave – alone. Read why this is a great idea.
		Consider part-time work for both mom and dad. My husband and I have been doing this successfully for 15 years. Find out how we made it work.
		Set up a shared online to-do list.
		Use an online shared family calendar.
		Dads: Volunteer at school. This is a wonderful, easy, and important way to share the unpaid labor typically absorbed by women.
		Acknowledge that moms who work are 5 times less likely than working dads to have a spouse at home handling childcare and housework.
		Encourage work places to offer flexible schedules with insurance, sick leave, vacation time, raises, and promotions.

Studies show that motherhood is the biggest cause of the gender pay gap. Motherhood is why there are fewer women in government, fewer women running Fortune 500 countries, and fewer women in positions of power in our society helping to make the decisions that shape the world we live in. Men have kids too, but women disproportionately take on the the role of chauffeur, cook, and house cleaner, whether they work outside the home or not. They do this work for no pay, and at the cost of less influence on society. Many families choose these roles because our culture has a strong belief that having one parent focused on the home and the children, and the other focused on earning money, is the best way to team up for the good of the family. I’d like to see more families choose a more equal balance between the unpaid work men and women do inside the home so more women can have a bigger and more equal influence outside the home.

There are many things moms, dads, and businesses can do to help change this dynamic right now.  Start with the items on this list, and read about more ideas on this blog.