Here's Why Pandemic Was So Hard on Families

The latest statistics on the labor force participation of women with children under age 18 shows why the pandemic has been so hard on families. With the great majority of mothers in the labor force, family life was thrown into turmoil as day care arrangements closed and schooling turned remote. Below is a comparison of the labor force participation rates of mothers in 2021 with their counterparts in 1975 by age of child...

Labor force participation rate of all women with children under age 18

2021: 71.2%

1975: 47.4%

Percentage point change: +23.8

Labor force participation rate of women with children aged 6-17, none younger

2021: 75.5%

1975: 54.9%

Percentage point change: +20.6

Labor force participation rate of women with children under age 6

2021: 65.6%

1975: 39.0%

Percentage point change: +26.6

Labor force participation rate of women with children under age 3

2021: 63.1%

1975: 34.3%

Percentage point change: +28.8

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Characteristics of Families—2021 and Women in the Labor Force: A Databook 2020

How Far Do You Live from Your Mother?

If you're like most Americans with living mothers, your mom lives only a few miles away. Yes, even in these modern times.

"Very close residential proximity to one's mother beyond coresidence is common across the life course even in the geographically large United States," reports a study of proximity to mother in the journal Demographic Research.

Using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, the study's researchers looked at how far children born between 1951 and 1968 lived from their mothers over a 47-year time period. Here are the results for children whose mother was alive at each given age...

Median distance adult children live from mother at each given age

Age 25 to 34: 6.3 miles

Age 35 to 44: 11.1 miles

Age 45 to 54: 12.4 miles

Age 55 to 64: 10.1 miles

"Overall, a large share of children lived very close to their mother through midlife," concludes the study.

Source: Demographic Research, Proximity to Mother over the Life Course in the United States: Overall Patterns and Racial Differences

Single Parents Not Necessarily Going it Alone

Many single parents are living with a partner, reports Pew Research Center in an analysis of the Census Bureau's 2017 Current Population Survey. Fully 35 percent of single parents were living with a partner in 2017, up from 20 percent two decades ago in 1997.

Unmarried parents living with children under age 18
Solo mother: 53%
Solo father: 12%
Cohabiting mother: 18%
Cohabiting father: 17%

Many solo mothers and fathers aren't so alone either. A large share live with their own parents—31 percent of solo fathers and 22 percent of solo mothers. The grandparents "could be playing an important role as caregiver to any grandchildren in the household," says Pew.

Source: Pew Research Center, The Changing Profile of Unmarried Parents

Is Your Mother Still Alive?

Millions of Americans celebrated Mother's Day yesterday by honoring the memory of their mother rather than spending time with her. While the 60 percent majority of adults still have Mom in their life, a substantial 40 percent do not. The percentage of adults whose mother is no longer alive becomes the majority in the 55-to-64 age group...

Mother is no longer alive
Total 18-plus:   39.8%
Aged 18 to 29:  3.4%
Aged 30 to 44: 16.2%
Aged 45 to 54: 32.7%
Aged 55 to 64: 62.8%
Aged 65-plus:  96.8%

Source: Demo Memo analysis of the General Social Survey