What woke me up as a woman
We have to keep reminding ourselves of this: By law, women in Switzerland have only had the same rights as men for just under two generations. Women's suffrage was only introduced in 1971, 53 years after Germany, and it was only in 1988, with the revision of the new marriage law, that women in this country were granted the right to enter into a contract, open their own bank account and pursue gainful employment without their husband's consent.
It's no wonder that women are still struggling with numerous prejudices and obstacles in 2024. Traditional images of women and mothers seem to be slowly dissolving in our minds. Five Fritz+Fränzi employees talk about the experiences they have had as women that have left a lasting impression on them.
«Surely you have to get home early to breastfeed»
Before the birth of my first daughter, I worked as a freelance journalist - and was regularly booked for the production of a major Swiss magazine, among other things. That went well. After my maternity leave, I made a special trip to the editorial office to report back. After a nice chat - about the baby, among other things - we got to the real purpose of my visit: «When do you need me again?» I wanted to know. The production manager was visibly struggling with an answer.
After excuses such as «Well, you know that working here is stressful» and «It can get late sometimes», the decisive sentence came: «Surely you have to get home early in the evening to breastfeed.» Even my reassurances that childcare would be taken care of on my working days didn't help. I was out. This reaction to my motherhood sobered me up. It certainly wouldn't have happened to a young father.
A woman has to earn her own money, my grandma always emphasised. But teamwork was over in the laundry room at the latest.
Virginia Nolan, Editor
«The mental load only decreased significantly after the divorce»
23 years ago, my ex-husband and I became parents rather hastily. Without realising it, we ended up in a classic division of roles: he provided the main income, I took care of the household and children, studied at university and supported the family budget with small part-time jobs until I started my career. All of this only worked thanks to years of help from our mums.
Nevertheless, I mutated into a family management machine. Between cramming, nappy changing and cleaning, so to speak. While my fellow students were sleepily rubbing their eyes during the first lecture of the morning, I had already woken up the children, fed them and taken them to nursery. After the last lecture, it was straight shopping, picking up the children (and cuddling them), cooking, washing, cleaning and so on. I often didn't get to study until after 10 pm. That was great back then, after all I was still young and an owl. I didn't question this feat of strength for a long time. After all, it worked.
The mental load, this organisational merry-go-round in my head, only decreased significantly two years ago. Since the divorce, my ex-husband and I have been sharing the care of our youngest son equally. What a world of difference!
Ode to Grandma
When I think about who (helped) shape my image of women, my grandmother comes to mind. She always emphasised that a woman had to earn her own money. She had always held this view - and took her newlywed husband by surprise when he returned to their home after work for the first time.
Grandma hadn't spent his absence doing housework, but had used it for other things: In the morning she had got herself a city map - new to Zurich - and in the afternoon a job. Granddad wasn't thrilled: «What do others think of someone who sends their wife out to work?» According to my grandma, such worries never bothered her, and grandpa gave up his worries when her salary helped pay for his moped. From then on, the bike saved him the daily pedalling from Zurich to Meilen, where he worked as a baker. «It's better together,» said my grandma, and she was right.
My song of praise for her, whom I miss, would be even better if I could now say that she also prioritised teamwork in the household. But the laundry room was the end of the line - that was her domain, and she was at least as eager to talk about competing for the whitest sheets on the block as she was about her financial independence. There was no pardon for a crumpled duvet - not until the very end.
I know that my mum only wanted the best for me and that her concern about my weight reflects the relationship she has with her own body.
Maja Nicolin, Online Marketing Manager
«My mum's slim body image shaped me for years»
I come from a sporty family. Being thin and athletic was always very important to everyone. Especially for the women in my family. Fat women's bodies suggested weakness of character and lack of discipline and were pitiable.
As a child, I wasn't as sporty as the others and later as a teenager I wasn't fat, but I wasn't thin and athletic either. I think my mum feared for a while that I might get fat. She gave me diet tips and admonished me to do more sport and not ride my bike because my calves were already too wide. She commented on my weight either with regret («Could it be that you've put on a bit of weight?») or with appreciation in her voice («Have you lost weight?»). In the past, these comments either made me proud when it came to being thin or made me panic when I seemed to have put on weight.
It was only recently that I managed to tell her what it was doing to me and asked her to stop judging my weight. Fortunately, she was able to accept this and I think it made her think. I know that my mum only wanted the best for me and that her concern about my weight reflects the relationship she has with her own body.
After the birth of our son, my partner moved up the career ladder and was never asked if it was all manageable.
Lisa Groelly, Head of Online Editing
Bombarded with stigmatising questions as a mother
When I became pregnant, my partner and I were working in the same company. While my partner continued to be treated as he always had been, I was confronted with questions, concerns and expectations that I hadn't expected: would I come back at all, and if so, by how many percentage points would I reduce my workload? It was not easy to juggle a child and work.
It was even worse when I came back after my maternity leave. I was constantly being asked how the little one was doing, where he was and who was looking after him. When we had to work from home because of coronavirus, my superiors assumed that I was also looking after our baby while I was at work, even though we had him looked after during this time.
My partner started working at the same time and it wasn't an issue for a second whether it would be possible to manage everything as a new father.
