It has been calculated that women in full-time employment earn 15.7% less than men.
Indeed, maternity leave and taking time out to bring up children can do serious damage to a woman’s career and lifetime earning potential. However, is it realistic for women to expect to go back into work at the same level as their peers who continued with their careers after a period of child rearing?
And what happens when a woman has sacrificed a high powered job or put her career on hold to rear children if her marriage breaks down? Sadly, divorce court financial settlements in such cases are rarely equitable and often do not take the sacrifices into account.
What advice should we give to our daughters? Share the parenting role more equitably? Avoid taking time out for parenting? Insist on a pre-nuptial agreement? Start her own business?
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