This is a Guest Specialist Post by Laura Barker of The Navigation Point, whose expertise we hope our readers appreciate and benefit from.
Laura is a qualified coach with ICF accredited diplomas in Personal Performance Development and Corporate and Executive Coaching. Through her business, The Navigation Point, she offers a combined approach to help working parents thrive in their careers with balance and wellbeing, while helping business to flourish through retention and development of their working parent talent.
60% of mothers and 30% of fathers change career after parental leave.
This hugely impacts talent within organisations, but not all businesses have a strategy in place to reflect these statistics and retain their highly valued staff.
There are a number of factors that impact the exodus from workplaces and careers after the transition to parenthood, but for this article I would like to focus on mental wellbeing for returning mothers and the wide-ranging impact of this issue.
Returning to work from maternity leave can be particularly a stressful time for Mums, and it is essential that employers are equipped to safeguard their mental health.
It is reported that 9 in 10 women face issues with their workplace during transition back from parental leave and a shockingly high 77% of mums say they had a negative or discriminatory experience during pregnancy, maternity leave or return to work.
Research shows that 54% struggle of women struggle to balance their time between childcare and work and 85% of mothers feel guilty about leaving their children while they work.
As a result of these struggles returning to work after maternity leave, half of mums reduce their working hours, and a further one in five leave their employment altogether.
This represents a high turnover of experienced, knowledgeable and valued staff, which could be reduced should organisations offer more support to employees.
We see the impact of organisations not supporting new mothers in their return as follows:
1) 75% of parents face stress and overwhelm in workplace which can lead to sickness absence and reduced productivity.
2) 55% think their employers have little or no understanding of the challenges faced as a parent, which can lead to a potential erosion of loyalty and engagement
3) A lack of support and isolation is cited as the reason why 37% of returning mums consider resigning straight after their return, with the potential loss of key talent straight after their absence.
4) 56% of working mothers say work-life balance is “very difficult” and this indicates a real impact on staff wellbeing and ultimately performance.
On average women work for 30 years after returning from having their first child, some up to 40 years or more, so it is hugely worthwhile to invest in empowering, developing and retaining them.
Supporting the mental health and wellbeing of staff ensures they feel valued and supported as individuals, as well as employees, and happier, more committed staff contribute to an enhanced customer experience too.
We have put together five practical steps for supporting working parents and maximising the wellbeing of new mothers:
• COMMUNICATE- Keep talking regularly about the individual’s priorities and concerns with a future focus on long-term career aspirations. Listen to their ideas and consider what might be possible to achieve greater balance and wellbeing. Ask how you can best support them and create a culture of openness. Don’t assume what is best for any individual and ensure no judgements are made.
• CONNECT- Cultivate a team effort that develops inclusive supportive teams. Encourage working parents to connect and share tips/experiences rather than hiding their challenges. Build a supportive community and ensure no one feels alone/ isolated.
• CELEBRATE- Recognise results and outcomes by celebrating wins and focusing on performance and productivity than presenteeism. Show understanding and appreciation of the other challenges they face outside of work as parents. Recognise and articulate their individual strengths and celebrate their knowledge and experience, including the skills learnt while on maternity leave.
• CONSIDER- Consider what flexibility is possible in terms of flexible/ remote working within your organisation. 71% of mothers who aren’t working did not return to work due to lack of flexible and part-time jobs on offer, while 41% of those who have been denied flexible working left as a result. Simply being mindful of the times of meetings can be really impactful.
• CULTURE- ‘Walk the walk’, ensure a positive working parent culture with great role models in place throughout the organisation to demonstrate that balance and wellbeing are possible and promoted. Ensure leaders are sufficiently trained in managing difficult conversations and being aware of the needs of their teams from a wellbeing perspective. Implement good practices such as not sending emails over weekends and leaving the office on time. Encourage the whole team to prioritise their wellbeing with an openness around challenges of being a working parent, as well as other caring responsibilities.
A smooth transition through pregnancy, maternity leave and the return back to work can be the difference between retaining a motivated employee or losing her because the demands of her previous role and family life are irreconcilable. Therefore ensuring that the transition process is well-planned and agreed by both the employer and new mother is a great investment.
It is crucial to remember that a “one size fits all” approach will never be appropriate when supporting returning mothers, as the transition will differ from individual to individual.
Be mindful that returning to work after maternity leave can be a stressful time for a new mother and managers should be alert to the signs of poor mental wellbeing. However, such risks can be minimised when careful thought is given to training, processes, communication and flexible working opportunities.
If you feel that your organisation could benefit from further support in this area, please let us know so we can afford it further coverage and you are encouraged to reach out to Laura via laura@thenavigationpoint.com or visit www.thenavigationpoint.com for more information.
Please additionally note that in cooperation with Laura we can facilitate assistance in respect of the above to the deaf and hard of hearing communities through our inclusive and accredited BSL enabled approach. Please see our post entitled "Business challenges faced by the Deaf & Hard of Hearing communities" and/or contact us here for further detail.