Why Jill Christensen is Single

According to NBC News, between August and September, 1.1 million workers ages 20 and over dropped out of the American labor force, meaning they are no longer working or looking for work.  Of those workers, 865,000 of them were women, a number that is four times higher than the 216,000 men who also left the workforce, according to the National Women’s Law Center (NWLC).

Emily Martin, vice president for education and workplace justice at NWLC, says this data points to the ongoing breakdown of our nation’s caregiving infrastructure.  “As families struggle to figure out how to keep their jobs while also making sure their children are cared for, it’s women who are being pushed out of work,” Martin says.

According to data from McKinsey & Company, mothers are spending 20 more hours a week on housework and child care during coronavirus than fathers.  As a result, many working mothers are feeling burned out by the overwhelming demands of both work and home.

The result? U.S. divorce rates are skyrocketing. The number of people seeking divorces was 34 percent higher from March through June compared to 2019, according to Legal Templates, a company that provides legal documents.  The combination of stress, unemployment, financial strain, illness, homeschooling children, and mental illnesses has put a significant strain on relationships.

JILL, WHAT CAN I DO?  If you are carrying the majority of the responsibilities in your household or relationship and it is bothering you, speak up.  Do not sit in silence.  I can tell you from personal experience that when you shoulder the majority of the work in a relationship, resentment will build toward your partner and respect will dwindle, and that is the beginning of the end.  Please do not let it get that far. If your ‘partnership’ is anything but, here are tips to get your husband to help out more and tips to get your husband or wife to help out more.  I’m rooting for you.