During World War II, while American men were off at the front, the government created Rosie the Riveter, with her flexed muscle and "We Can Do It" motto to encourage women into the work force. Today, women are marching into the workplace in even larger numbers and taking a sledgehammer to the remaining glass ceilings.
Women's economic empowerment is arguably the largest social change of our times. Just a generation ago, women were customarily confined to menial jobs - they were expected to abandon their career once they got married and had children (which the television drama "Mad Men" demonstrates so well). Today, however, women make up almost half of American workers (49.9 percent in October) and earn almost 60 percent of university degrees.
But if the empowerment of women was the great change during the past 50 years, dealing with social "repercussions" may be one of the great challenges for the next 50.
I have been noticing that women - anywhere from their mid 20s to early 40s - often feel they are caught in a tangle of commitments: career, marriage, and children. Many believe they must choose, specifically, between having a career or children. Stats show that skilled women who prosper in high-pressure jobs during their 20s often leave in dramatic numbers during their 30s when they decide to start families. Similarly, unskilled women tend to get stuck in poorly paid jobs with "hand-to-mouth" child-care arrangements.
In both scenarios, because scores of women no longer want to fill the shoes of "Suzy Homemaker" (either due to financial or personal reasons) two-income households have become the norm.
Many American children have been paying the price for this revolution (a report by Unicef in 2007 on children in rich countries found that America had some of the lowest scores for "well-being").
This comes as no surprise.
By Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development standards, America's public spending on family support is quite low (it spends only 0.5 percent of its Gross Domestic Product on public support for childcare compared with 1.3 percent in France and 2.7 percent in Denmark). America provides no statutory paid leave for mothers and only 12 weeks unpaid.
Several other countries go to great lengths to make sure there's little discord for women and men who want a career and a family:
Austria, the Czech Republic, Finland and Hungary provide up to 3 years of paid leave for mothers.
Germany has introduced a "parent's salary" (Elterngeld) to encourage mothers to stay at home.
Iceland and other Scandinavian countries add increasing financial incentives for fathers to spend more time rearing children.
Millions of American families, however, still struggle with insufficient childcare facilities and a school day that bears no relationship to working lives. The American government needs to start considering other countries that are attempting to address the loss of female talent and difficulty of combining work with children. A few examples:
Many elite companies across the Atlantic are rethinking their promotion practices. For example, Addleshaw Goddard, a law firm in London where a female friend of mine is employed, has created the role of legal director as an alternative to partnerships for women who want to combine work and motherhood.
Working from home is also a growing option. More than 90 percent of companies in Germany and Sweden allow flexible online working schedules.
Perhaps we should divide the working week in new ways - many of my family members in France are judged on annual rather than weekly hours, or allowed to come in early or stay late.
And finally, current American welfare states were designed during the time when women had almost no options besides being Suzy Homemaker. The government needs to modify these operations so that they align with contemporary families. German schools, for instance, close at midday. American schools could follow suit by having shorter school days and summer holidays so that parents could juggle their commitments easier.
Whatever option, Barack Obama needs to start measuring up to his campaign rhetoric about "real family values." If "We (women) Can Do It," then he can too.
Sarah T. Schwab is a Sunday OBSERVER contributor. Visit her Web site at www.sarahtschwab.com and send comments to editorial@observertoday.com