What Mom should be paid

Our love for our mothers is boundless. And we all got our Moms the perfect gift this Mother's Day to show her just how much she's worth to us.

But as I like to tell folks, "Say it with cash!"

OK, giving Mom a handful of dollars might undercut some of today's sentimentality, but the bottom line is that time is money. So all that time Mom spends or spent taking care of us is worth actual fiscal compensation.

How much? The folks at Salary.com say they've figured it out.

Salary.com broke out the "mom job" for both those with an outside job and stay-at-home moms.

Using data from a survey of more than 6,500 mothers, Salary.com determined the time mothers spend performing 10 typical job functions -- janitor, cook, psychologist, laundry operator, chauffeur, computer expert, facilities manager, day care center teacher, housekeeper and chief executive officer.

Then taking those jobs' annual average salaries, the website found that the duties would equate to an annual 2011 salary of $115,432 for a stay-at-home mom. Working moms would get an "at-home" salary of $63,472 in 2011 in addition to the salary they earn at their outside job.

Since moms tend to go a bit overboard -- Note to my mother: I'm not complaining, just reporting! -- Salary.com factored in time and a half for overtime to arrive at its mom paycheck amounts.

You can use your own discretion in deciding whether to give your mother a tip.

The website's slideshow provides the income numbers and mom duty percentages used it its calculations.

Salary.com also has a mom paycheck calculator where you can personalize your mother's hard work on behalf of her family and print her a "check." 

Here's wishing all mothers a very happy day this May 8th and every day of the year. Thanks for all you do for us!

Related posts:

• Mom's money lessons
• Tax breaks for mom
• Have you hugged your mom today?
• Filing Mom's tax return
• Taking care of Mom with some help from the tax code
• Thinking about Mom in this week's tax tip

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