Most grandparents in this situation are women who have already had time out of paid work to raise a family.
But pay discrimination and choices to take time out of paid employment are complementary rather than competing explanations of gender differences in pay.
They are less likely to have the national insurance contributions they need to get a full basic state pension, so taking more time out of paid work to care for grandchildren could cost them in retirement.
"This apparent wage penalty for taking time out of paid work is greater for more highly educated women, at 4% for each year out of paid work," the IFS found.
"The lowest-educated women (who actually take more time out of paid work after childbirth) do not seem to pay this particular penalty, probably because they have less wage progression to miss out on". Media captionZoe, a nurse, explains how her career is on hold while she looks after her children.
On the downside, neither Larson's or Sanders's effort offers a caregiver credit, something that disproportionately impacts women, who are more likely than men to take significant time out of the paid workforce to take care of everyone from children to elderly relatives — and see their ultimate Social Security tally fall as a result.
Additionally, women are less likely than men to work for employers that provide pensions, and we often take time out of the paid workforce to care for children or other family members.
She wants to expand benefits for those who need them the most, like women who often take time out of the paid workforce to care for sick or aging loved ones.
Through a technical change in the way benefits are calculated, the self-proclaimed Party of family values proposes to lower the benefits of caregivers who take time out of the paid work to care for children, elderly parents, spouses, or others.
She sees expanding Social Security as a solution to serious challenges facing the nation, including our looming retirement income crisis, the continuing perilous growth in income and wealth inequality, the financial squeeze on working families, and the need to support those among us who take time out of the paid workforce to undertake the essential and demanding job of care-giving.
