Author Archive

The Promise of New Deal Feminism

Posted December 14th, 2009 by Morra Aarons-Mele

A single mom needs work; she’s literally thinking about applying for welfare. As she writes on her blog, “I had been looking for a better job, but there were none to be had in the low-income/high-unemployment area where I lived. And I couldn’t get a full-time job anyway — I was still on the waiting [...]

What Should Companies Do to Retain New Moms?

Posted October 29th, 2009 by Morra Aarons-Mele

I was at the Working Mother Work Life Congress this week, which showcases the 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers and also provides workshops and discussions for people who work in the field unfortunately called “work life.” Companies were asking: What should we do to retain new moms, and to keep them engaged and energized? [...]

Thinking about non-traditional maternity leaves

Posted July 10th, 2009 by Morra Aarons-Mele

A recent Good Morning America story reflected something I’m hearing more of from friends: now doesn’t feel like a safe time to take a full maternity leave. As Ellen Galinsky notes in the piece “The issue for women these days is that they are increasingly important financial supporters of the family,” unemployment rates and pay [...]

Jumping back on the ladder- a conversation with Harvard’s Christine Heenan

Posted June 25th, 2009 by Morra Aarons-Mele

Cross-posted from the Huffington Post
Brenda Barnes, now CEO of Sara Lee, has gotten a lot of press because she left the corporate workforce for a decade to spend more time with her children, and recently returned to be CEO of a major company. Barnes is indeed a rare person, and women can make themselves feel [...]

Posted Under: O: Open Flexible Work

Link blogging health care reform- why no single payer option?

Posted June 9th, 2009 by Morra Aarons-Mele

While doing research for a CNN.com Live appearance on health care reform and the Senate, I collated a series of helpful links. I am a proponent of single payer reform, but as has been reported, it’s just off the table on Capitol Hill. Obama himself said, “if he could start from scratch, single-payer might make [...]

Act now to protect Children’s Health Insurance in Texas

Posted May 29th, 2009 by Morra Aarons-Mele

Julie Pippert writes of the battle to protect CHIP in Texas. You can act now to voice your support of CHIP in Texas. And, as more states face budget shortfalls, protecting CHIP/SCHIP in your state will be an issue to keep watching- in California, Gov. Schwarzenegger “may eliminate the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, called [...]

Rescuing our kids from too much princess glitter and camo gear: TV

Posted May 28th, 2009 by Morra Aarons-Mele

When I was a kid I wasn’t allowed to watch anything but PBS. I was completely out of the loop and constantly teased for my lameness. I will never do that to my kids!
Kids loving TV is a reality for parents, and it can be a positive force. But a SurveyUSA poll of 1000 parents [...]

Are you working a “Second Shift”?

Posted May 15th, 2009 by Morra Aarons-Mele

Does the Second Shift still apply? I’m re-reading Arlie Hochschild’s 1989 classic in preparing a syllabus for a course on 21st Century feminism. Hochschild’s findings were clear and familiar to many women: when they get home from work, many women with children work a “second shift” of domestic and child care responsibilities. Hochschild opens her [...]

Poll on Flexible Work in the Recession

Posted April 29th, 2009 by Morra Aarons-Mele

Maria Shriver announced that we now live in what she calls “A Woman’s Nation.” She wrote on the Huffington Post last week:

Posted Under: O: Open Flexible Work