Women in the U.S. aren’t just balancing careers and caregiving—they are the invisible backbone of a broken system keeping our economy afloat. In this episode of the VEST Her Podcast, we sat down with Dr. Jessica Calarco, sociologist, professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and author of Holding It Together: How Women Became America’s Safety Net.
Moderating this discussion was Monica Barczak, VEST Member and Founder & Principal of Barczak Consulting, where she works with organizations to promote family economic success and well-being.
Together, they unpacked the hidden burdens placed on women, the systemic challenges that force them into unpaid caregiving roles, and the urgent need for policy reform.
Available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
This episode is brought to you by VEST, a peer network for women professionals and investment fund investing in women led companies.
This conversation was part of a more intimate coaching session with VEST Members and has been repurposed to accommodate this episode. If you'd like to learn more about joining our peer community, go to www.vesther.co to learn more.
Women as the Default Safety Net
Dr. Calarco’s book, Holding It Together, sheds light on a troubling reality: when government and workplace policies fall short, women step in to fill the gaps—often at great personal and financial cost. She explained how this phenomenon is not just a result of individual choices but rather a deeply ingrained expectation in American society.
“In the U.S., when someone loses a job, falls ill, or can’t afford childcare, we don’t have a strong safety net to catch them,” she explained. “Instead, we rely on women—mothers, daughters, sisters, friends—to step in. This isn’t just about personal sacrifice; it’s about systemic failure.”
Compared to other countries with more robust social policies, the U.S. offers little in the way of paid parental leave, affordable childcare, or universal healthcare—leaving women disproportionately responsible for caregiving.
For the full show notes go to www.VESTHer.co/podcast
Guest Bios
Dr. Jessica Calarco is a sociologist and a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She's an award-winning author, and her most recent book is titled Holding it Together: How Women Became America’s Safety Net. She has written for the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Atlantic, and CNN. She writes the Hidden Curriculum newsletter, and she is also a mom of two young kids.
Monica Barczak, is a VEST Member and Founder and Principal, Barczak Consulting, where she works with organizations to promote family economic success and well-being. Prior to establishing her consulting practice, Monica was Director of Community Health Equity at Ascension, where she designed and implemented strategies to reduce health disparities for low-income uninsured adults in Tulsa, Oklahoma. During her tenure, Monica grew the impact of this portfolio from $5 million a year to $12 million a year. Before this, Monica held multiple leadership roles in nonprofits and social impact organizations.
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