Mom’s work is never done – and now it’s worth less, too

By Allison Linn

If moms earned wages for the work they do around the house and with the kids, they’d be getting a pay cut this year.The take-home pay that a mother would earn for everything from cooking to handling the family finances would total at $59,862 if she were paid on the open market, according to Insure.com’s analysis of government data on hourly wages.That’s down from $60,182 in 2012 and $61,436 in 2011, Insure.com’s annual Mother’s Day Index shows.The drop is because typical wages for some domestic jobs have fallen, said Amy Danise, a spokeswoman for Insure.com.The Mother’s Day Index tallies 14 jobs that moms might perform, including cooking, driving, cleaning and taking care of the kids, and then looks at Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data for those tasks. Danise said the website compiled its list by brainstorming about typical mothers’ tasks, and coming up with a typical number of hours she might spend on them.By Insure.com’s tally, a mom’s average work week would be significantly longer than 40 hours – although most moms would probably also agree that parenting requires far longer hours than your average desk job.

Read More Mom’s work is never done – and now it’s worth less, too – Life Inc..