The article investigates problems of combining paid employment and maternity. The theoretical approaches presented in the economic and sociological literature explaining the conflict of social roles of women’s “work and maternityˮ are analyzed. The differences in the positions of rural and urban mothers with children in the labor market are estimated. The empirical base of the study is the data of 26 waves (2017) of the Russian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey RLMS-HSE. The article discusses the socio-demographic and economic factors that promote and hinder the effective combination of work and motherhood. It is noted that discrimination of working mothers in the labor market is not a new form of social inequality. It is shown that the risk of unemployment increases with the increase in the number of children in the family. It is concluded that rural women are highly concerned about the risks of job loss, difficulties in employment and low material well-being of families. At the same time, working mothers living in rural areas are more satisfied with life than urban women. It is concluded that it is necessary to strengthen the social protection of women with children, increase their employment opportunities and develop the social services market in rural areas.
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