‘The workforce is not made for working mothers’

Women’s empowerment charity The Female Lead and Peanut, the online community for motherhood, have published research that uncovers the business impact of not listening to mothers in the workplace.

‘From Labour Ward to Labour Force’ reveals that in the UK, over half of mothers who have returned to work after a baby (52%) aren’t satisfied with the support they received at work. Consequently, over 35% of returning mothers feel like their work set-up is unsustainable. Of those, some 47% plan to leave their jobs in the next year. Low engagement costs the global economy an estimated $8.9 trillion a year, or 9% of global GDP (Gallup).

The report shows how businesses can change this, by revealing the benefits and policies women can be offered to boost retention, job satisfaction and make them speak positively about their employer. The result is a clear set of actions – some as simple as just asking them what they need – that employers can take to supercharge women through this precarious period. One solution requested by over half of mothers (54%) is completely free to employers: to simply ask what support they need.

Flexibility and communication came out top

● The most wished-for benefit was flexibility around unexpected childcare responsibilities (77%) closely followed by the offer of flexible hours (75%)

● Over half of new mothers simply wanted to be asked what they needed (54%)

● A fifth (20%) of returning mothers think encouraging men to take more parental leave is the

action employers could take to best help mothers at work long-term

And the data confirmed that giving women support isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s a business win.

Of the mothers who felt supported at work:

● 70% felt more loyal to their company as a result

● Two thirds would recommend their company and stay longer

● They were 20% more committed and 30% more confident than the average returning mother

Women who felt most supported by their employer or colleagues had higher levels of positive feelings when returning to work. They felt more excited, energised and calm and less stressed. They were more likely to say that having a child has had a positive effect on their career, and needed less time to adjust to returning to work.

And when returning mothers didn’t feel supported, the opposite was true. Of those who didn’t feel supported, 20% said they would move to another employer, 13% said they’d work less hard, and 14% said they would speak negatively about their employer to others.

The From Labour Ward to Labour Force report captures the experience of 8,000 women in 100+ countries who have returned to work in the last five years after having or adopting a baby, including over 2,000 in the UK and 2,000 in the US. It shows what support they need, and shows that while the pandemic shone a spotlight on flexible working, returning to work still isn’t working for many mothers.

The research launched earlier this month as part of a national campaign to raise awareness on how businesses and employers can better support for women at work.

Edwina Dunn OBE, founder of The Female Lead, said: “The ‘satisfaction gaps’ we have analysed, between what mothers want and what they are offered, are a clear call to action. By not addressing this, employers risk female workers stepping back, going part-time, becoming less productive, or quitting altogether. Low engagement costs the global economy an estimated $8.9 trillion a year, or 9% of global GDP (Gallup). We want to flip the ‘Motherhood penalty’ on its head. We believe employers are missing a “motherhood reward”: a set of steps to invest in mothers and supercharge them through this difficult transition period, resulting in business wins.”

Michelle Kennedy, Founder and CEO of Peanut, said: “The truth is clear, businesses thrive when they embrace and support the complexities of parenthood. The ‘motherhood penalty’ can be transformed into a ‘motherhood reward,’ where companies benefit from empowered, engaged employees who feel valued. It really comes down to treating returning mothers as individuals, listening to their needs and supporting them throughout, whether that means flexible hours or compassion around unexpected childcare responsibilities.”

What can employers do? Flipping the ‘motherhood penalty’ into the ‘motherhood reward’

The report pinpoints opportunities for employers to flip the narrative by addressing the “satisfaction gaps” between the policies and benefits mothers want, and what they are offered. These gaps were largest for the support around flexibility and communication which mothers want so much:

● 75% of UK mothers wanted flexible working, but only 42% were offered it

● 52% wanted to be asked what support they needed, but only 21% were asked

To read the full report, click here.