Member News

In a New Job -- and Newly Pregnant

by Work It, Mom! Team | 833 views | 0 comments | Rate this now!

Read the original story here

405

Vote!

What do you do when you've just started a new, high-pressure, high-profile job... and then find out that you're pregnant? This April 18th article by The Associate Press tackled the question, focusing on a recent photo of Spain's new defense minister, who is 37 years old and seven months pregnant:

But some women who felt a jolt of sisterly pride from across the Atlantic also felt a pang of empathy at another part of the story. In Spain, some were questioning whether Carme Chacon should be able to take her state-mandated 16 weeks of paid maternity leave, given the importance of her job.

And that kind of dilemma resonates for women anywhere who have jobs they need and value: What do you do when the timing of motherhood clashes with the upward trajectory of your career?

Time Magazine took a closer look at how Minister Chacon's pregnancy has been received in Spain:

For Spanish feminists, the small shock of that moment is exactly the point. "It's an important image precisely because it conveys normality," says Marisa Sotelo, president of the Madrid' based Women's Foundation. "It serves a pedagogic function: it shows that women can be and are everywhere."