Conference turris::womannotes-v1

465.0. "Displaced homemakers" by STUBBI::B_REINKE (where the sidewalk ends) Tue Sep 01 1987 13:38

    In today' Boston Globe, in the Metro/Region section, there
    is an article about a program for  displaced homemakers.
    It is administered by Bay State Skills Corp which is "a qausi-
    public, state funded corporation that creats partnerships between
    eduation and business."
    
    "The term 'displaced homemaker', coined when the national displaced
    homemakers movement started in California in 1975, describes the
    middle-aged woman who has been 'forcibly exiled' form her role as
    wife and mother, either by widowhood or divorce, and who is struggling
    to find a place in the job market. The women are generally over
    35 and often over 50."
    
    [there were over] "150,000 displaced homemakers under 65 in
    Massachusetts in a 1983 census....nationwide there are 11.5 million.
    
    There are 25 centers around the state operated by the Bay State
    Skills Corp. They employ specially trained career counselors to
    "help displaced homemmakers deal with their loss of financial and
    emotional security and offer personal and career counseling as well
    as direct referral to job training, education programs or employment
    opportunities.
    
    "The goal is economic independence for the women, and with that,
    a new self-esteem. Employers are rewarded by workers who are mature,
    willing to learn and ahve a 'very strong work ethic'."
    
    The program began in 1980 and has served about 10,000 women during
    the past five years.
    
    The remainder of the article profiled one woman who has turned
    her life around as a result of the program.
    
    Bonnie