How Companies Can Support Mothers in the Workplace (during the pandemic)
We can all recognize that motherhood can be a life changing experience. In fact, you may have heard someone say that becoming a mother was the best decision of their life. However, that doesn’t minimize how many mothers feel stressed out and overwhelmed as they juggle their careers. Prior to March 2020, mothers have long discussed the difficult balancing act to meet deadlines, help with homework, and take care of the home. For many, this is no surprise considering that women carry the brunt of household responsibilities (The Pew Center). However, it should be alarming that overworked mothers have taken on more caregiving responsibilities as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic (KFF Women's Health Survey 2020).
As a result, woman are reevaluating their careers. In fact, 1 in 4 women are considering downshifting or leaving the workforce completely (McKinsey). Dr. Andrea Holman, a psychologist and DEI expert states, “The pandemic caused problems for everyone. For mothers in the workplace, it highlighted issues that were always there… loud and in surround sound.” Holman goes on to add that unhealthy definitions of motherhood leave many mothers in a state of perpetual martyrdom. The common belief is that, “You must sacrifice yourself for your employer, your child, and for your spouse because that's what makes you a ‘good mom’… and that's not sustainable.”
Rather than wait for mothers to burnout, downshift, or resign, employers can take a proactive approach to support the wellbeing and retention of mothers. Dr. Amber Thornton, psychologist and creator of Balanced Working Mama, wants employers to remember, “The pandemic isn’t over. There needs to be a lot more support within our workplaces.”
Employees are still suffering from loss, providing care for family members, navigating trauma, facing challenges with child care, and much more. Rather than rushing employees to return to the status quo, Holman and Thornton encourage supervisors to facilitate dialogue and shift policy to support the ongoing needs of staff during this unprecedented time.
Support can come in a variety of forms, yet policy change can have the greatest impact for mothers. A great starting point is to expand maternity leave to include adoption and foster care. Typically, many companies are willing to make space for new parents. However, support cannot be limited to the addition of children. It must also consider the loss of children and make space for bereavement, whether the loss of an adult child or a miscarriage. We need employers to consider the full experience of parenthood when developing policy and think beyond “this is how it’s always been.”
While policy change may take time, supervisors can initiate dialogue with their staff and collaborate on ways to best support their needs. Some mothers will need deadline extensions, while others need flexibility to work from home with a child who has to quarantine after a classmate tested positive. No matter the need, employers and supervisors have an opportunity to create a new work culture that honors parenting in the workplace.
Thornton shared, “It's really helpful to be able to tell your supervisor, ‘this transition is tough for me and I need you to know that I'm trying but I'm not my my best right now’ and for your supervisor to say, ‘Okay, I get it.’” That alone can open a door towards building trust, creating support, and improving wellbeing (professional and emotional). In the midst of a pandemic, we need more compassion and tangible support. We simply can’t return to how things were.