Opinion: Pregnancy and parenting require serious physical and emotional work. It’s time we start compensating parents.

Some of the most important work in this country is happening every day, right before our eyes, and it rarely gets acknowledged. This Labor Day, U.S. lawmakers should recognize the critical work mothers are doing to build our country’s future, and support them accordingly with a recurring, monthly income boost both during pregnancy and for at least a year after giving birth. 

Mothers are drowning in both unpaid household labor and paid workforce labor. Seventy-four percent of American women with children at home are in the labor force, the overwhelming majority of whom work full time. Yet according to 2024 data, nearly half of American households do not earn enough to cover their basic necessities. Rising prices, stagnant wages, and receding government services are putting extraordinary pressure on families, and depriving new moms of the option to stay home with their babies—if they so wish. 

In other words, today’s mothers have the unprecedented task of working to provide for their kids while also working to raise and care for them. It’s a lot of labor, often without adequate compensation, and as a result, moms are struggling.

I believe the best way to protect the well-being of mothers and infants in this country is to provide a monthly budget boost during the critical periods of pregnancy and postpartum. Providing a little income support when welcoming a new baby protects two generations at once—as data from other countries shows. 

How financial stress affects pregnancy

Economic strain is not just impacting mother’s wallets; it’s also impacting the health of their pregnancies and births. Research shows that lower-income parents are at significantly higher risk for complications like infants being born premature, underweight, or both. 

It should not be surprising, therefore, that the U.S. has, by far, the highest maternal and infant........

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