(WJW) — As the Biden administration considers ways to target economic stimulus to the most vulnerable groups, a movement is putting a spotlight on the needs of moms.
In an opinion piece for The Hill back in December, Girls Who Code CEO Reshma Saujani put forward the idea of a “Marshall Plan for Moms.” The idea – named after the U.S. program to rebuild Europe after the Second World War – is to stimulate the economy by rewarding mothers for their “unseen, unpaid labor.”
At the time, Saujani stated the payment should be a “means-tested $2,400 monthly payment to the women who are the bedrock of our economy and our society.” The group has since signaled openness to other compensation models.
Studies have suggested that the pandemic downturn has disproportionately impacted women and mothers. The Marshall Plan for Mom calls for recurring payments to mothers as a means to lift the entire economy. Saujani’s group has since launched a Marshall Plan for Moms website to spell out the thinking:
“Like the original Marshall Plan of 1948, this plan would be a financial investment in rebuilding from the ground up.
COVID has decimated so many of our careers. Two million of us have left the workforce, at a rate of four times that of men in September alone. Millions more have been forced to cut back our hours or work around the clock to keep our jobs and be full-time caregivers.”
It calls for Biden to establish a task force to create a Marshall Plan for Moms; implement a short-term monthly payment to moms depending on needs and resources; and pass policies like paid family leave, affordable childcare and pay equity. “
Though there is no indication yet that the plan will be adopted by Democrats or Republicans, celebrities such as Alyssa Milano, Charlize Theron and Eva Longoria are throwing their support behind the concept.
On Tuesday, Saujani and 49 other prominent women in tech took out a full page ad in the New York Times urging the Biden administration to address the crisis for mothers in the fist 100 days in office.
“Moms are the bedrock of society, and we’re tired of working for free,” reads the ad.
