Let’s celebrate mothers by giving them a better deal at work
Opinion
Employers must consider not only how they retain working mothers, but how they ensure that women keep progressing while reducing the pay gap.
#BreakTheBias became the mantra for this year’s International Women’s Day, and for me the issue has never felt more pertinent. I never imagined that in 2022 I would be talking about the regression of gender equality.
Research shows that the maternal bias is the strongest type of gender bias. It involves an assumption that women become less competent and less committed to their work if they decide to have children.
The maternal bias is particularly salient right now. The impact of Covid-19 and two years of subsequent lockdowns that followed have seen working mothers, in particular, more heavily burdened.
So, while we celebrate mothers this Sunday, let’s take stock of the recent setbacks to gender equity and consider the steps we should be taking to create a fairer future for all.
The maternal wall and the gender pay gap
Women hit the maternal wall when they encounter workplace discrimination because of past, present, or future pregnancies or because they have taken one or more maternity leaves. Women may also be discriminated against when they opt for part-time or flexible work schedules.
The maternal wall includes various forms of discrimination encountered by working mothers and mothers seeking employment. As a direct result, women are often overlooked for job roles and promotions, and this is a major contributing factor to the gender pay gap.
The Covid penalty
The last two years have impacted working mums acutely. Multiple studies show how caring responsibilities and home-schooling fell disproportionately to women.
Research by Mumsnet revealed that 70% of mothers with a male partner said that they had done the majority of home-schooling during the pandemic; 73% said they had done all or most of the laundry; and 60% had done all or most of the cooking.
Many working women faced furlough, redundancy or downshifted their careers, some opted out altogether in order to cope with increased demands at home. Many more struggled with burnout. In the UK, this resulted in the gender pay gap increasing to 15.4% in 2021.
Couple this with intersectionality issues of ethnicity and social class and the statistics only get worse. It’s fair to say that Covid-19 and working from home has not just made these forces more significant but accelerated them.
Act now
Knowing that bias exists isn’t enough, companies need to fight the bias and tackle the pay gap head on. Increasing the uptake of Shared Parental Leave is one way to help reduce the gender pay gap in the UK and minimise the effects of the motherhood penalty.
Shared Parental Leave should be well publicised within organisations and employers should ensure that their family leave policies become an integral part of their diversity and inclusion agendas. Challenging cultural expectations and showing support from the top can make all the difference in helping women to return to work earlier if they want to.
Uptake of Shared Leave has been a major problem, particularly during the pandemic. To make Shared Leave a more viable option, employers should look to enhance the pay above statutory rates to encourage uptake by men and to move away from the assumption that the mother is always the primary carer.
Flexibility and hybrid working options is another key area of challenge as we come out of the pandemic. Although essential for enabling employees to juggle their work with caring responsibilities, the latest research suggests that people working from home may be overlooked for promotion which could worsen the motherhood penalty.
At the7stars we have an enhanced shared parental leave and pay policy. To help counter the maternal wall we also give expectant new mums a bonus to buy maternity clothes with, plus mums get a return-to-work bonus and flexible work schedules. New mums are also paired up with a parent buddy and offered return to work coaching to keep communication channels open and confidence high.
Employers must consider not only how they retain working mothers, but how they ensure that women keep progressing, occupying positions in the boardroom, and working towards eliminating the pay gap. Shared parental leave and flexible working will be key to empowering working mothers to maximise their productivity when it suits.
And finally, if the pandemic has taught us one great lesson, it’s that being mindful and compassionate of every individual is the most inclusive response to embrace.
Helen Rose is managing partner at independent media agency the7stars