When I speak on work-family issues to audiences around the country, some of the biggest complaints I hear come from individuals who are described by the census as living in ‘non-family households.’ They resent the fact that their family responsibilities literally don’t ‘count,’ either for society or for their employers. Stephanie Coontz Read Quote
Over the ages, some societies have accorded far less value and respect to singles than to married individuals. Stephanie Coontz Read Quote
It no longer makes sense to see singlehood and marriage as two distinct and stable social categories that should be accorded different legal rights and social esteem. Stephanie Coontz Read Quote
Graduating from high school is certainly a good idea, but it’s no longer much protection against poverty. Stephanie Coontz Read Quote
During the 1960s, rising real wages for low-income and high-income workers, due in part to rapid economic growth and the spread of unionization, worked in tandem with expanding government support systems to improve Americans’ well-being. Stephanie Coontz Read Quote
Historically, it has required a combination of favorable employment trends and active government intervention to lower the percentage of people in poverty and raise living standards for the working middle class. Stephanie Coontz Read Quote
We need to push for work-family practices and policies that allow individuals to customize their work lives according to their changing individual preferences and family obligations, not just their traditional gender roles. Stephanie Coontz Read Quote
Throughout history, people with few educational or economic resources and little bargaining power have often looked to authoritarian, ruthless people to stand up for them. Stephanie Coontz Read Quote
As time passes, the actual complexity of our history – even of our own personal experience – gets buried under the weight of the ideal image. Stephanie Coontz Read Quote
