We moms, forced to quit our jobs
"When I handed my resignation letter to my boss, I saw years of sacrifices gone up in smoke: college paid for by being a waitress, nights in books, internships, anxiety about the job interview, and the first, exciting, rewards in the office. All dissolved in an instant: I felt like a loser." Marika, a 37-year-old from Naples, is one of 37,611 women (compared to 13,947 men) who in 2019 said goodbye to salary, contributions, and, why not, career opportunities. An army, peaceful but disappointed, the size of a medium-sized city like Nuoro. The numbers come from the Labor Inspectorate's new report, which takes a snapshot of the phenomenon each year and highlights the increase in 2019 compared to 2018.
What gives pause for thought is the motivation for all these resignations: the difficulty of reconciling private life and employment when a child is born. But who are these women? How old are they and where do they live? Is there no way to prevent them from being forced to choose between family and work?
What does it mean to make ends meet?
By 2018, 35,963 women had left their posts. While, 1 year later, the increase does not seem huge, the absolute figure leaves one speechless when looking at the 17,175 in 2011. "And to say that in January 2020 we celebrated the Istat data on women's employment, with 35,000 more jobs than in October 2019," notes Barbara Poggio, labor sociologist and pro-rector for Equity and Diversity Policies at the University of Trento. "It means we find a contract, we win promotions, but then we have to throw in the towel when we become mothers. This phenomenon is not new, but it is taking on worrying dimensions. Also because, in 60 percent of cases, resignations are given after the birth of the first child; before, we quit at the second child, when things were actually more difficult to make ends meet, now we are forced to quit right away."
Those who quit their jobs are, on average, between 34 and 44 years old, have low professional seniority and live in the North. In fact, leading the unflattering ranking, with 11,105 resignations, are Lombard moms. "There is also a numerical reason: in the North there are more working women, with the employment rate averaging 60 percent, in line with Europe," Professor Poggio points out, "while in the South only one in 3 women has a contract. Indeed, here girls are often forced to leave to build a future, only to find themselves without the help of their grandparents or family network once they move to another city.
As happened to Marika. "I came to Milan to study: a "safe" degree in economics, then a position in an auditing firm. I was satisfied and it seemed natural to fulfill my other dream: to have a child," she says as 2-year-old Pietro takes his afternoon nap. "Everything fell apart when he didn't get into the municipal daycare and we fell back on a nanny. In fact, on multiple nannies who periodically abandoned us. Exhausted, we turned to a nanny recruitment agency: they were perfect, too bad they had golden pay. We held out for 1 year, hoping they would accept Peter at the private daycare. Which, however, has since closed. So my husband and I found ourselves one evening, calculator in hand, trying to reconcile the accounts that no longer added up. His salary is higher than mine, so for now I put aside work. And myself."
Why do job applications ask if you are over 40?
The gender pay gap is one reason for the resignation of new mothers. According to Eige, the European Institute for Gender Equality, the difference in average monthly income between men and women in Italy is 18 percent. "What is needed now is a really truthful mapping of this gap and an effective law that forces companies to close it," comments Barbara Poggio. "Not least because in the coming months, due to the pandemic-related crisis, female employment is likely to lose out even more. Istat data for April have already shown a 2.9 percent drop. Service sectors, for example, tourism and stores, where so many women work, will be penalized. And what will happen if schools close again due to a resurgence of infections? The family burden will fall on mothers and the number of resignations will probably go up."
The other major obstacle is the lack of services. In larger cities, kindergartens remain a mirage, as do toy libraries or subsidized price initiatives. Serena, a 41-year-old factory worker from Rome, had become a kind of Sherlock Holmes on the hunt for the best ones. "With the first child, who is now 7 years old, a miraculous nesting and grandmothering saved us. Then, after the birth of the second, my mom got sick. I tried everything: leave of absence, help from friends, nannies on call. Meanwhile, the big one grew and the workload increased. The blanket was always too short and I was in danger of choking on it. I asked for part-time, but the company refused me. It was actually the classic straw that broke the camel's back: for months I had been feeling on the sidelines, my manager blaming me for absences related to my "being a mom" in front of everyone. Now I'm on the bench and I'm afraid I'll be there for a long time: who wants an over-40 woman asking for flexible employment?"
Part-time often proves to be a boomerang for career and retirement. Smart working can be a solution, but clear rules are needed
"The old part-time is a dangerous tool, because it has been shown to prevent career advancement and, in a system like ours based on contributions, it also becomes a boomerang for retirement purposes," Professor Poggio points out.
What about the smart working that is so much talked about? "We need to really intervene on flexibility: institutions and unions must make it a reality even after the emergency has passed, taking advantage of the particular historical period that can act as a driving force," notes Poggio. "Clear rules must be put in black and white for the various categories. Parental leave must also be improved, and not just by increasing the days. Because of the Covid crisis, there is now an allowance of 50 percent of daily pay, but it is usually 30 percent: using them is not very convenient. This is a country where there is a lot of talk about family, but little is done: there is no more time to waste."
Also for the good of the Italian economy: it is proven that if female employment increases, GDP increases.
What is understanding numbers?
73% cases in which leaving employment after the birth of children is the mother
9 out of 10 resigning women who are blue-collar or white-collar workers, mainly in the service sector
21% of part-time requests that are granted
33,442 new mothers resigned in northern Italy in 2019
15,505 resignations motivated by "lack of support"
(Source: Labor Inspectorate, 2019 Report)
What is the Better for Families Act?
The approval process in Parliament of the Family Act, the bill wanted by Equal Opportunities and Family Minister Elena Bonetti (who assures that the measures will be reality by the end of the year), began on July 16. Awaiting the implementation decrees expected in the fall, here are some of the planned measures.
- The universal child allowance: it will be paid monthly from the seventh month of pregnancy to the 18th birthday of each child. It will have a minimum amount for all households, to which a variable amount will be added depending on Isee.
- Subsidies for daycare and nursery fees also up to 100 percent.
- The extension of mandatory paternity leave (from 7 to 10 days), regardless of marital and family status.
- A supplementary allowance on salary, provided by Inps, for female workers returning after compulsory maternity leave.
