We’re in the midst of a mass exodus of working mothers from the labor force. The latest is Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary, who announced her departure Wednesday. And it might have been because President Donald Trump had been calling her repeatedly while she was away on maternity leave, reports suggest.
According to sources familiar with the matter who spoke to CNN, the president contacted her frequently, asking when she was going to return. Fast Company reached out to the White House for comment, but did not hear back by the time of publication.
In an X post, Leavitt wrote: “I cannot be the best mom my two young children deserve while devoting the constant time, energy, and attention required of the White House Press Secretary.”
Leavitt, who also has a 2-year-old son, gave birth to her second child in May; eleven weeks later, Leavitt was back at work. Federal law covers up to 12 weeks of unpaid maternity leave, and it’s worth noting that the United States provides the least amount of parental support of any high-income country.
Leavitt, 28, is the youngest press secretary in U.S. history. She’s also managed to hang onto a job that others have struggled to keep: During his first term, Trump went through four press secretaries. (By comparison, Biden had two, Obama had three during his two terms.) In a Truth Social post, Trump said Leavitt will “now be one of my top outside advisors, and an influential voice within the Republican Party” during the midterm elections.
The news comes on the heels of Leavitt praising the President and his administration for empowering working moms during a Fox News interview with Lara Trump: “I only have time for my children and my husband and work. Everything is on the back burner, but I wouldn’t have it any other way,” she said. “I’m very grateful to the president for empowering so many working mothers and parents.”
Since January, 845,000 women have left the workforce. In July, women saw a net loss of 32,000 jobs and accounted for all the net job losses in the economy, while men experienced a net gain of 9,000 jobs. Fueling this mass departure is an increasingly demanding culture of constant connectivity. According to Microsoft’s 2025 Work Trend Annual Report, emails sent after 8 p.m. have increased by 16% in the last year, and one-third of workers said the pace of work over the past five years makes it “impossible” to keep up.
Parenting has also seen a similar intensification that hits women the hardest. Since the 1980s, time spent with children has increased by one hour a day for fathers and 1.5 for mothers. Meanwhile, a Pew study found that mothers are more likely than fathers to say that they cannot give 100% at home or at work. As one mother told Pew: “I’m supposed to work like I don’t have kids and supposed to parent like I don’t have a job.”
Karoline Leavitt’s departure is particularly high-profile, but across offices in America, working mothers caught between the demands of their jobs and their families have already left, or will soon follow in her footsteps—a crisis few are doing anything to address.
