The author of this article makes the mistake of assuming 1) that women who don't have children of their own don't any family caretaking responsibilities at all; and 2) that most people agree with her mistaken assumption and thus, like her, take it as a given that women who don't have children go through life without family ever being saddled with family caretaking duties or other time-consuming, draining, demanding family responsibilities of any kind.

Her blinkered view seems to stem from the fact she draws her conclusions about "childfree women in the workplace" in general largely from her own personal life, aka her own limited "lived experience." From what she says, the lived experience she's had so far has been pretty cushy. It sounds she and her husband have been able to have carefree lives devoted to fulfilling, pleasurable pursuits because everyone in both their respective families have had the good fortune to always be healthy, able-bodied, fairly young and "normal" enough to take care of themselves and not place an unusual burden on anyone else in the family:

For me and my husband, the decision to remain childfree was a deliberate one. We've built a life filled with fulfilling careers, travel, hobbies, and a deep connection with our extended family. We cherish our sixteen (and counting!) nieces and nephews, showering them with love and support. But parenthood, for us, wasn't the right path.

It doesn't seem to have occurred to her that vast numbers of women who don't have children of their own are nonetheless saddled with huge amounts of family responsibilites because they're the caretakers for one or several members of their families who have demanding special needs that make them dependent on others to get through every day life because of health problems and misfortunes that are no fault of their own; who've become dependent and disabled because of alcohol and drug addiction and the life choices they've made; or who've managed to manipulate and guilt-trip others in their family into believing they're utterly helpless and can't cope on their own.

The reality is that plenty of women without children of their own are caretakers for a parent, sibling, grandparent, aunt/uncle who needs tons of time-consuming and draining help, attention, support and consideration.

In fact, in many families and communites, women who don't have children of their own are seen as having a special duty to become the primary caretakers and domestic servants of anyone in their family who is sick, disabled, elderly, terminally ill, drug addicted, alcoholic.

Indeed, it's long been the case that women who are childfree (and/or not married to men aka "unattached") have been seen - by their families, communities, society at large to shoulder, and often even by people in their workplaces too - as having a special duty to take on all or most of the caretaking responsibilities for sick, dying, elderly, mentally ill, physically disabled family members. For generations, women and girls who don't have children or a husband of their own have had their childlless and unmarried state used against them as the main justification for why the lion's share of responsibility for caring for sick, dying, elderly, disabled members of their families gets put on them - and them alone.

Because they have family members with special needs that they're expected to care for, many girls and women past and present have been prevented from pursuing their own interests and building a life of their own. Untold legions of women over the course of time have had to forego pursuing their dreams in education, sports, creative fields, hobbies, travel and work due to family obligations. Many have had to put off or completely give up having a normal social and romantic life - delaying or completely going without having friends, dating, moving out of their childhood home, coupling up/settling down with a partner, having children of their own.

Even when women have had the chance to pursue their own personal life goals as far as education, work, creative pursuits, hobbies, relationships and even their own children go, it's often the case that because they are women, they are expected to drop everything and become caretakers when a parent, sibling or other family member becomes seriously ill or disabled.

I am childfree and I don't buy this line of argument. Where we are exploited is the unfair division of labor, yes, and leave time. If should just be leave that everyone gets equally. Then mine could have been used for a dying parent or sick sibling. Leave is my pet peeve on this issue. As well as healthcare in the US.

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