‘Waitress Moms’ now need real help, not just more promises

By Teresa Heinz Kerry and Jeffrey Lewis

Political consultants and the media began creating labels for women voters eight years ago. First, it was the Soccer Mom, a symbol of the stress and rewards of prosperous women raising active children. Next was the Security Mom, a symbol of our nation’s fears after 9/11.

This election year, we met the Waitress Moms — mostly worried about keeping a roof over their heads and putting food on the table. Many are in dead-end jobs and raising children alone. Their lives are defined by overwhelming economic insecurity. The American dream — the fundamental belief that hard work can build a better life — isn’t on the menu of Waitress Moms.

The tie that binds the Soccer Mom to the Security Mom to the Waitress Mom is that presidential candidates have needed their votes. But, in prior elections, candidates offered few real policy solutions to address the stresses in the lives of these women. The same can be said of this year’s presidential candidates.

At the Heinz Family Philanthropies, we have identified three very real challenges Waitress Moms face. More important, we propose real solutions.

The challenges
First, Waitress Moms can’t depend on their jobs. All low-wage workers face limited opportunities for advancement. For women, residual sexism limits them further.

Second, Waitress Moms can’t depend on their families. More often, their families depend on them. Estimates suggest that caregiving middle-aged women experience 40% fewer paid work hours than those who don’t provide care. Also, women caregivers lose about 10% of their median annual incomes in related out-of-pocket expenses. This equates to less money saved, lower Social Security benefits, smaller (if any) pensions, and thinner resumes.

Third, Waitress Moms can’t depend on existing social safety nets. Medicaid is not a health care fallback for them. So they go without. But when they can no longer go without, they head to the emergency room. And Social Security fails Waitress Moms by not counting their years of caregiving toward the credits they need to earn a benefit.

Meaningful solutions
This is the tough reality for Waitress Moms. But it doesn’t have to be. Our next president has an opportunity to tackle their struggles and help them step toward the American dream.

• Improved access to child care: We can make accessible and affordable child care more available. We could provide tax incentives for employers to underwrite the costs of on-site childcare, or refundable tax credits for Waitress Moms to help defray expenses. Improved access means more women who can commit more hours to earning a paycheck.

• Equal opportunities for saving: It’s hard enough in this economy to save money. For women, out-of-date rules make it harder.

Take a look at the current rules for food stamps or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). To be eligible, a woman who loses a job must spend down her assets to $3,000. If she owns a $125,000 home, she rightfully gets to keep it. But if she manages to put away $15,000 toward buying a home and then loses her job, she has to spend it down to $3,000 or risk losing assistance. Changing this law would help bring security to millions of Waitress Moms.

Further, few waitress jobs come with a retirement savings plan. Government should provide incentives for low- and moderate-income savers in the form of a matching contribution to a tax-deferred account.

• Protect and strengthen Social Security: The gender wage gap turns into a retirement asset gap due to women’s caregiving years out of the workforce. Waitress Moms must be assured Social Security will remain a reliable source of income. Today, benefits are calculated by averaging monthly income over the 35 highest-earning years. Women who take time away for caregiving get zeros factored into their calculations. This lowers their benefits.

We should calculate benefits for women caregivers based on their highest 30 years of income to give them five years’ credit. It increases the benefit and sends a message that our society values raising the next generation and taking care of the last one.

The candidates who emerged as the winners in Tuesday’s election need to get beyond the campaign label and commit to improving the lives of Waitress Moms.

When the media forget Joe the Plumber, these women will still be working hard to help their families stay afloat. Waitress Moms are real women with real problems. They work hard to make do, and always put family first.

TERESA HEINZ KERRY is chairman of the Heinz Family Philanthropies. Detroit native JEFFREY LEWIS is the organization’s president. Contact them at jlewis@heinzoffice.org.