Lately I think about whether I should go back into the workforce.
After all, I’ve got only one child (age 16) still at home during the day now, and a husband who’s also at home. If my husband homeschooled our son, I could get a job.
However, according to this article, “Studies have found that for every two years a woman is out of the labor force, her earnings fall by 10 percent, a penalty that lasts throughout her career.”
Hmmm. I’ve been home with my kids for 26 years. 10% X 13 equals 130%. That’s quite a drop! That statistic is not referenced, however, so I can’t check to see if it’s legitimate. Just as well. If it were true, my paycheck amount would be a negative number!
That’s assuming I could even find a job. Somehow I don’t think potential employers would be impressed that I’ve spent the past 25 years raising children and homeschooling them. I doubt that homeschooling is one of the keywords they look for when they scan resumes. 
Looks like it may not be worth all the upheaval to be a “relauncher,” as women returning to the workforce are now called. Maybe I’ll stick to being a modestly paid but happy work-from-home writer for as long as I can.
Hi Barb,
I’m with you. I’ll stick to the stay at home thing, writing and teaching online classes from home. If I could even get a job outside the home, I think it would have to be something I completely loved. Been a home-body-mom-type-person for so long, I can’t imagine life working other than here:) Hmmm, I did see a job in the paper today for a tractor trailer driver…
Barbara,
Do you really think that if I applied for a job I would put “stay-at-home, homeschooling mother” on the application? NO! I am the Vice-President of a small research facility that studies the long-term effects of children being educated in a multi-generational environment with a student/teacher ratio of 4:1. My position requires long hours and multi-tasking. I must work as a team player and a top-notch negotiator all while adhering to strict budget guidelines.
Smiles,
Carol
What the studies don’t account for is that many relaunchers deliberately choose positions that are less lucrative but offer greater flexibility and less stress. I do plan on reentering the paid workforce when my kids are older but there’s no way I would ever go back to the kind of job I had before. The money just isn’t worth all the stress.
[...] look on a resume? Barbara Frank muses on the question of what kind of income she can expect in If Mom Goes Back to Work at Barbara Frank [...]
Hehe, Karen, a truck driver…..I hate traffic, so that’s not even on my list. I’m with you, I love it at home.
Carol, I LOVE your job description!
CW, that’s a great point. As we get older, we get wiser, don’t we?