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Mothers with many children are often disadvantaged
“Families with multiple children increasingly have to justify their life plans.” photo
© Christian Charisius/dpa
For mothers of many children, returning to work becomes like running the gauntlet. The association of large families calls for better advice and recognition of parenting skills.
On International Women’s Day, the association reported that mothers with many children in particular experience disadvantages in the labor market. Every third child grows up with two or more siblings, yet their parents are seen as isolated cases and their needs are not given enough attention.
“Our impression is that families with multiple children increasingly have to justify their life plans,” criticized association chairwoman Elisabeth Müller. For many families, full-time work or almost full-time employment for both parents is hardly possible, and at the same time, part-time solutions are not sufficiently available. From the association’s point of view, families should have the choice of how they divide working activities within the family.
Reliable child care is essential
There is also a need for target group-oriented advice on vocational training and further education. Many mothers reorient themselves professionally after a family phase because they no longer wanted or could work in the job they had trained for. With many children, this is even more challenging. According to the association, reliable child care is essential in this phase, but the general conditions are getting worse and worse.
Since 2021, the association’s employees have been advising and supporting mothers and fathers with three or more children as they return to work as part of the MACHbar model project – funded by the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs. Parents of many children have acquired skills through their parenting activities that are in demand on the job market and should be recognized accordingly, the association demanded.