As Companies Cut Back, Moms Quit

[jeffrey]

After Melissa Kimball's son was born, she asked her company to let her work part time on a permanent basis. When it said no, Kimball said goodbye.

"I didn't want to quit. I loved my job," says Kimball, 36, an architect in Washington, D.C., who left her job in April to stay home with Chance, 20 months. "But I felt like, if I'm not valuable enough for them to make family-friendly policies work, then the job isn't for me."

Companies that once touted family-friendly benefits are cutting back on them in this tight job market, slashing programs that let employees telecommute, work part time, share jobs, or take paid family leave. The reversal is having a profound impact on a number of working mothers now struggling with whether to leave jobs for their families... [read more at usatoday.com]