Lone Motherhood
EmploymentOf
those lone mothers with children under 15, 85% work full-time, compared to only
61% in married women.
Only
half of married women with children age three to five are employed, compared to
80% of lone mothers.
Why do these disparities exist?
- The traditional family model
supported by the social policies of Austria assumes that there will be a second
income in the household, most often the father’s, to supplement the
mother’s
income.
- Monetary childcare benefits,
provided through the Erholungsurlaub and Wochengeld
policies (see Childcare
Policy
for more information), are inadequate for
lone mothers to survive on,
thus they are forced into the workplace.
