Nearly two-thirds of mothers in the U.S. were the primary, sole, or co-breadwinners for their families in 2015, part of an upward trend in which women have been contributing more to the household earnings than ever before, according to a new report.
The Center for American Progress found that only 65.5 percent of families with children in 2015 had married parents, while 26.4 percent were led by single mothers. Unsurprisingly, the analysis found that 42 percent of mothers were the primary or sole breadwinners for their family that year — meaning they generated at least half of their family’s income — while 22.4 percent of mothers brought in between 25 and 49 percent of the earnings for their families.
The report’s author Sarah Jane Glynn, a senior policy adviser at the Center for American Progress, noted in a statement that the findings show that “the days of the full-time, stay-at-home mom” are no longer a reality for most families in the U.S. The report also found that mothers who had higher levels of education were more likely to be breadwinners or co-breadwinners, while young and lower-income women were more likely to be the primary or sole source of their family’s earnings.
Furthermore, the analysis found discrepancies between mothers in the U.S. based on race and location. The team determined that mothers living on the West Coast were the least likely to bring in the majority of their family’s income, while mothers in the Midwest were the most likely. On top of that, black and Latina mothers were more likely than white mothers to serve as the primary or sole breadwinner — 70.7 percent of black mothers and 40.5 percent of Latina mothers brought in most of their family’s income last year, in contrast with 37.4 percent of white mothers.
“As more and more mothers enter the workforce and become breadwinners for their families, workers need family-friendly policies that are responsive to their needs. This is especially true for black and Latina mothers, who make up a disproportionate share of breadwinners,” Glynn said in the statement.
