Black and Latina women fare the worst. Public Health’s Communities Count database does not break out single mothers' earnings by race. But data from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey show a slow decline in King County of White single mothers in poverty, from 24 percent in 2012 to 20 percent in 2016. Latina mothers also saw a decline, although their overall numbers remain much higher: In 2012, 50 percent earned poverty wages; by 2016, that was down to 44 percent.

Black mothers, meanwhile, saw an increase in that same time period, from 40 to 47 percent living in poverty.

“We do know that looking at other data, race does make a difference,” said Dr. Nadine Chan, assistant chief at Public Health. “The experiences of different races are not the same when it comes to job opportunities and being able to get housing.”

Like Phipps and Pico, Briana Bell thought her stagnant pay was unique to her. An HR professional by trade, she moved with her two children from Dallas to Seattle in 2014. Her pay spiked at the time of the move, but it didn’t last. Shortly after her transfer, Bell requested more flexibility from her work to parent her children. Her employer wouldn’t give it.

So she left to find a job that could give her the latitude she needed to care for her teenager and younger daughter.

She took a position at a recruiting firm with a base pay that was $7,000 less but promised a commission. But the recruitments didn’t come, and after a year she was let go.

Single mother Briana Bell at Twin Ponds Park in Shoreline, May 17, 2018. (Photo: Matt M. McKnight/Crosscut)

Bell now works part time as an executive assistant in Shoreline and collects unemployment. She lost her health insurance. Her rent rises every year, up $250 a month from when they moved into their Shoreline apartment three years ago.

“I can barely, barely, barely make it with unemployment,” she said, seated at a plastic table in a Shoreline community center. “We can't do anything but pay for rent and utility and gas and food – a lowered amount of food.”

When asked why single mothers’ pay hasn’t budged, Hayes said she didn’t know. Public Health has conducted qualitative surveys of mothers, but broad conclusions are elusive. Still, there are some guesses.

“We know that women tend to make less than men,” Hayes said. “We know that child care is extremely expensive and hard to find.”

Chan offered a broader analysis.

“I can imagine that if somebody is in a married couple's household, there are probably more risks you can take in terms of, ‘Let's see what I can do if I jumped jobs,’” she said. “Because you've got two incomes, you can take more risks and take advantage of this economic boom.

“But when you have a single parent household there's less opportunity for you to take those risks. You don't want to put your income and wellbeing at risk.”

The common thread between Phipps, Pico and Bell is the importance of flexibility in work and the enormous challenges that come when that’s lacking. Every inflexible hour represents a choice: Forfeit that time, along with the pay and possibilities for advancement, or pay for child care. A fluid schedule is so valuable that Bell took a pay cut to find it.

“My boss at my job has probably been the only reason why I'm not homeless at this point,” said Pico, who does not work Fridays.

Even when a single mother can find a job with a fluid schedule, that need for flexibility gets in the way of moving up.

“It's hard to see my income not changing for various reasons and see younger people than me that have less experience than me moving on to better and bigger things,” Pico said. “I feel like part of the reason why I don't have access to those things is I’m not around as much. It's hard to apply for jobs and say, ‘Yeah this is a full-time job but I can only be here four days a week.’”

Hayes points to government efforts to stabilize families headed into homelessness, support programs for mothers and children’s health centers in schools. Seattle is also growing a subsidized pre-school program. But where those efforts support struggling women, they won’t reverse wage trends.

For all the anxiety that comes with not having enough money, more corrosive is the guilt.

In her first year-and-a-half, Eva bounced between three care centers. At one, Pico heard Eva was parked in front of a television all day.

“There's so much around what you're supposed to do to be a good parent and it's conflicting — support your children, but also do all these things that you don't have time to do if you're working full-time,” Pico said.

“So as a single parent you can't actually do all the things that society tells us what good parents are supposed to do.”