{"id":910,"date":"2023-05-04T15:32:35","date_gmt":"2023-05-04T14:32:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wakeupshakeupthrive.com\/?p=910"},"modified":"2023-05-04T16:19:25","modified_gmt":"2023-05-04T15:19:25","slug":"a-mothers-day-conversation-whats-happening-with-moms-over-age-50-in-the-workforce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wakeupshakeupthrive.com\/fr\/a-mothers-day-conversation-whats-happening-with-moms-over-age-50-in-the-workforce\/","title":{"rendered":"A Mother\u2019s Day Conversation: What\u2019s happening with moms over age 50 in the workforce?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The lives of working mothers over 50 have shifted from juggling toddlers and school-aged children to managing young adults while caring for aging parents and often a challenging career.. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Women of this age, as one of our interviewees Christiane mentioned, have a hockey stick career. Beginning at the end of the blade of the hockey stick, they tinker, in the blade years they commit themselves to learning more and becoming more experienced, then there\u2019s a growth inflection point where they are recognized for their skills and finally the end of the hockey stick where they\u2019re the ones in control. At age 50+ women (finally) have the wisdom, resilience, and the hunger to go full speed ahead.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In this month\u2019s blog,to honor Mother\u2019s Day, we explore how working moms ages 50+ are both striving and thriving as we highlight challenges they are facing, as well as suggest ways in which employers can do even more to set them up for success. We\u2019ve included snippets with inspiring mothers over 50 who shared the Wake Up, Shake Up moments of their lives with us – and now with you. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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History of Mother\u2019s Day <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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In 1905, American Anna Jarvis began lobbying for Mother\u2019s Day following the death of her mother,  a peace activist. Six years later, Mother\u2019s Day became a holiday observed in all 48 U.S. states. Fast forward to today, and Mother\u2019s Day is celebrated in nearly 60 countries worldwide. Switzerland and the United States both observe Mother\u2019s Day on the 2nd Sunday in May, often marking the day with flowers or brunch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While honoring mothers on this one \u201cofficial\u201d day results in many breakfasts-in-bed and much pampering, we at Wake-Up, Shake-Up, Thrive! wish to take a deeper dive into the ways in which we can support and honor mothers \u2013 all year long.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So much of the emotional and cognitive labor of daily life is placed on women. <\/strong>In addition to traditional \u201cwork\u201d in the workplace, let\u2019s not ignore the reality of a mother\u2019s unpaid work that might include shopping for the home, maintaining and cleaning it, planning activities, scheduling appointments, managing children, and taking care of immediate and extended family members. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In her interview, Christiane – a seasoned 30 year C-Suite Executive and mother of two – explored the idea of how you can only begin to thrive by applying the oxygen mask metaphor: You are of no help to anyone, unless you first meet your own needs. \u201cMaking sure I put my own oxygen mask on first is not because I\u2019m egotistic, it\u2019s because I can\u2019t give unless I have some energy left in the tank,\u201d says Christiane. We completely agree!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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How Many 50+ Moms Are Currently Working? <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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In 2021, the U.S. labor participation rate for women 45-54 was 75%, 59% for women 55-64 and 22% for women 65-74 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Comparable research in the Swiss Labour Force Survey<\/a> for 2021 showed 82% of women were still working at the age of 57 and by age 63, 52% of women were still working.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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So once their children grow-up, what changes? <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Adult children no longer require the same supervision and level of care, but this does not necessarily mean that mothers ages 50+ have more flexibility and adaptability. Given today\u2019s aging demographic, older women are also often faced with aging parents replacing child-care with elder-care. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

50+ women also face hurdles at work, including ageism, sexism, underrepresentation in leadership, and often daunting menopause symptoms. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes the hurdles we cleared in our 20s 30\u2019s and 40\u2019s become insurmountable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We had an incredible conversation with interviewee Fran – A Real Estate Property Manager and mother of two – who at age 45, had what she called a \u201cworkaholic addiction breakdown.\u201d Fran took a personal inventory and blew the whistle on herself and realized that, although she had a vision for her life, she was serving everyone else but herself. Her health, career, and marriage suffered and only by unraveling addictive patterns and adopting new choices could she discover her gifts as an entrepreneur who coached others.\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ageism and Sexism for Women over 50+ <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Many women feel they are either being pushed aside or pushed out. The thought of looking for another job and competing with people half their age can dissuade them from jumping back into the applicant pool. But if they need a flexible work schedule or want to take on more interesting work, they may decide to take the leap. One thing is for sure, the same old 9to5, approach to working isn\u2019t working at all.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Women are demanding more from work, and following the recent COVID pandemic, they\u2019re leaving their companies in unprecedented numbers to get it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Leanin.org and Mckinsey and Co. ‘s 2022 survey, \u201cWomen in the Workplace<\/a>,\u201d reporting on responses from more than 40,000 employees – including in depth interviews: It\u2019s not a great resignation. It\u2019s a breakup. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reasons women gave for leaving their positions included: <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n