This comment is kooky. Are you implying that one option for women nurses is marrying a higher-income man and becoming a stay-at-home spouse?
Men making less than the median for their gender (something like $55k in the US) are still marriageable; plenty of women marry men who can’t support families on their salary alone. Even at the median salary, supporting two people — let alone a larger family — could be a struggle, depending on debts and other commitments.
And then there are women who are not married to a man who makes money, either because they remain unmarried or because their husband has lost his job or cannot work for some reason.
Further, even if the cards align, it’s not great to be in a position of dependence on your spouse's salary. Sometimes you have to split up and sometimes your spouse dies without leaving significant insurance or inheritance.
I think they're saying that married people might have a little more leeway in changing careers because they have the stability of a second income in their household already.
Men making less than the median for their gender (something like $55k in the US) are still marriageable; plenty of women marry men who can’t support families on their salary alone. Even at the median salary, supporting two people — let alone a larger family — could be a struggle, depending on debts and other commitments.
And then there are women who are not married to a man who makes money, either because they remain unmarried or because their husband has lost his job or cannot work for some reason.
Further, even if the cards align, it’s not great to be in a position of dependence on your spouse's salary. Sometimes you have to split up and sometimes your spouse dies without leaving significant insurance or inheritance.