Women remain victims of systematic discrimination that restricts their economic independence - even in the 21st century and even in industrialized countries. Even as children, girls often receive less pocket money than boys, and although they usually do better at school in adolescence, they aspire to lower-paying professions. And then come the children ... in both Germany and France, taking a break to have a baby is a major career break - and therefore also a financial break.

While most mothers in France are able to cope with the double burden of work and household, the image of the “raven mother” is still widespread in Germany. In addition, many mothers in particular perform unpaid household and childcare work - so-called care work - the equivalent value of which can be estimated at around 23% of Germany's gross domestic product (GDP). In the United States, women's unpaid domestic work accounts for 43 percent of GDP, in France 33 percent.