One Ottawa pollster argues that burnout and a rise in conservative women’s movements are prompting more women to return to the realm of the home.
Kyla Ronellenfitsch, a data scientist and founder of Ottawa research firm Relay Strategies, made the remarks at a luncheon on Friday hosted by the Canadian Club of Ottawa and The Honest Talk, in celebration of International Women’s Day.
The event explored what it means to lead as a woman in an increasingly volatile world.
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Ronellenfitsch said women have always faced challenges in the workplace, but in recent years those issues have come to a head, sometimes in unexpected ways.
On social media, there’s been a rise in women rejecting the modern workplace and turning back to homemaking and more “traditional” gender roles, said Ronellenfitsch. One group refers to themselves as “trad wives.”
“Trad wives are an online movement of women who are advocating for traditional gender roles,” she said. “They stay home with their children, they bake very aesthetic loaves of bread, and post about it online. But while they are very niche, they’re very symbolic of this moment that we’re living in.”
While there are many factors that explain the rising embrace of full-time stay-at-home motherhood, Ronellenfitsch said the challenges facing working mothers are a major issue that have led many to be disillusioned with juggling family and professional responsibilities.
Ronellenfitsch compared the situation to a pressure cooker.
“The online world is simultaneously advancing and blocking progress for women,” she said. “What I’ve seen again and again in my research — and others’ research — is that women have been leading and that, particularly for mothers, they are facing perilous times. It’s a long-standing challenge.”
According to Ronellenfitsch, the contributions of women, both personally and professionally, are often overlooked.
“I get to have a lot of conversations with people from all different walks of life,” she said. “I hear about promotions, their struggles, their lived realities. And what I hear over and over again is that women are showing up over and over again and are not always being fully recognized in the workplace.”
Today, she said, 37 per cent of women who do not have children are the primary breadwinners in their household. For women with children, that number falls to 12 to 29 per cent.
That discrepancy is a long-standing issue for working women, Ronellenfitsch said.
“That goes back to the financial penalty that women experience after they have kids,” she said. “It isn’t just after maternity leave. On average, women see a full per cent decline in their income after five years of having children. At the same time as women are financially penalized, fathers’ incomes actually rise. A lot of this goes back to the expectation and reality of whose life is going to be more disrupted by having children.”
Ronellenfitsch’s research into the issue revealed that 30 per cent of young women are interested in taking on more traditional gender roles.
“A lot of the reasons that they were giving were really about spending time with their kids, to have time for their hobbies, to maybe grow a garden, to really have some time of their own,” she said. “All this to me is just symbolic of women’s burnout. What we’re seeing is women, not necessarily fully opting out, but choosing a different path or taking a detour because their work-life balance is simply untenable.”
Panel discusses balance and resilience
When it comes to weathering the storm, balance and resilience were top priorities for the women leaders who shared their experiences on a panel at the luncheon.
The Honest Talk co-founders Catherine Clark and Jennifer Stewart spoke with Devinder Gill, RBC regional vice-president of personal and commercial banking for Ontario north and east; Robin Richardson, senior vice-president of marketing and communications for Calian; and Lisa Weagle, a world champion and two-time Olympic curler and business leader.
“As a female leader, there still continues to be biases, conscious and unconscious, in the room,” said Gill.
“Sometimes you’re at the table but your voice isn’t actually being heard. What I found in those times was I just had to have passion. I had to do what I thought was the right thing. It’s okay to get a slap on the wrist afterwards. During any volatile situation, like the 2008 financial crisis, I did what I thought was right for my team and my clients.”
While diversity, equity and inclusion programs are under scrutiny, especially south of the border, Richardson said women leaders should be surrounding themselves with diverse voices for the benefit of themselves and their organizations.
“I surround myself with a lot of amazing women,” she said. “When you’re hiring, you’re looking for people who bring different strengths, different qualities to the table. At Calian, as a primarily defence organization, as you can imagine we have a lot of male voices around the table. But now, anytime we’re going into a meeting, there’s got to be a woman’s voice at the table.”
Weagle added that she hopes women in leadership will continue to offer support and mentorship to members of the upcoming generation, who are likely facing the same troubles they once experienced.
“I think this room offers hope and I think seeing the momentum over the last few weeks does too,” she said. “I think all these women and male allies in the room – keep that momentum going forward. There’s so many women in the room who can help each other. If you do get to the top, don’t forget to send that elevator back down and elevate others.”
