Part 1: Supporting new mums returning to work
Did you know, nearly half the workforce are female? Maternity and motherhood is a significant event that changes the lives of a large percentage of our staff. As employers, we need to be supportive of such an important event. Let’s take a look at how we can best enable our staff during such a time.
Are doing enough? Take a look at the below feedback from recent research on mothers returning to work.
- 1 in 9 returning mothers report feeling forced to leave their job.
- 1 in 5 mothers said they experienced harassment related to pregnancy.
- Google halved the amount of women leaving work following maternity by increasing their maternity leave .
So what can we do to enable half our workforce at such a time? During maternity leave, a mother will have gone through significant physical and emotional changes and strains. Whatever the situation – her life has just changed monumentally. Employers should consider what they can do to help returning mums get back up and running after maternity leave, and how they can support them at work whilst they settle into their changed lives at home.
We’re currently researching how other companies have seen positive change through improving their return to work policies and ethos. Watch this space for our next article with more detail on how to support mothers returning to work.
