Put simply, much of the economy functions as if children did not exist. Parents receive scant time off to care for young children, unlike in any other affluent country in the world. Public school doesn’t start until children turn 5. Most employers make it impossible for people who spend time outside the work force to climb a career ladder.

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For many adults, parenthood brings wrenching dilemmas, because so few good jobs and career paths acknowledge parenthood. Women, of course, pay a much higher price for these dilemmas than men. Much of today’s gender pay gap, research shows, stems not from blatant discrimination but from the penalties for working fewer hours or taking time off.