In a week of surveys charting discontent from women at work, one study found that one third of women believe children can be bad for a career.
In a poll of 3,000 working mums, carried out by parents’ club Bounty, one in five believe they were effectively demoted after having a child. Over half came to the conclusion that having a baby has had a negative effect on their career. Other findings include:
- 49 per cent claim to have missed out on promotion or other opportunities.
- One quarter returned to the office to find they’d been replaced.
- 21 per cent lost out on employee perks such as the company car, pensions, mobiles and laptops.
- 26 per cent had to take a pay cut because their employer didn’t believe they’d be able to do the job.
But there are those who argue that parental skills are a positive boon for the workplace. In a letter to the FT, Regina Herzfeldt, Research Fellow at the Center for Creative Leadership in Brussels, cites research from the Center that finds home life has a positive influence on working parents’ management abilities:
- Parenting skills include multi-tasking, negotiation, helping others to develop.
- Increased self-esteem gives parents greater confidence in facing workplace challenges.
- A happy home life helps people cope with stressful workplace issues.
- Commitment to your role as a parent reduces stress and means you come to work creative and decisive.
It’s surprising if senior managers — often parents themselves — fail to recognise the value of a happy home life. But do you think parental skills make a difference at work?
