The Pandemic, Working Mothers, and the new normal

Working mothers are a powerhouse of inspiration seamlessly juggling between children, pets, office, household chores and much more. 

The corona-virus induced pandemic has been a moment of reflection for humankind. A temporary pause that created havoc for many, especially working mothers. 

Work from home (WFH) became the new normal. Working hours got stretched beyond the 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. time frame and the demarcation of having personal time and space almost blurred. This style of work added more anxiety and responsibilities to the already overflowing bucket of working mothers.   

More mothers lost their jobs or were asked to take a furlough as compared to fathers. Voices were raised pointing at the concerns of the impact this would have on the careers of working mothers. Here are a some challenges working mothers faced as the world went remote-first.

1. Mental health concerns 

Women need to go the extra mile to establish and retain their position in the workplace. So, mental health concerns are usually higher in working women than men. The crises induced by the pandemic only aggravated the situation. 

The burnout turned into heightened mental health concerns. A report suggested that 1 in 3 women in North America had voluntarily agreed to quit their job or put a temporary pause on their career. The circumstances were similar in many other countries. 

In most developed and developing economies, about 75 per cent of mothers supposedly suffered from mental health issues as compared to 69 per cent of fathers. 

Workplace boundaries enable in taking care of mental health concerns of men as well as women. Ergo, they must be strictly adhered to.

2. Social Stigma on working women 

Social norms and traditions have a stronghold in our country. 

The thought process that a working woman is a not-so-catering is still prevalent in many parts of rural and urban India. This social stigma is heart-wrenching as it defines a mother as a good or bad basis for her career choices. 

Working mothers got in a tight fix during the pandemic. It is easier said than done for any mother to be at home full time – working, meeting deadlines while taking care of her children without any help or with minimal help.

Yet social voices around this stigma kept growing louder against working women during the pandemic.

Single and trans mothers faced the highest criticism leading to anxiety,

depression and other severe mental health issues. 

3. Double shifts for working mothers

Women are known to work double shifts. Even during the pre-pandemic times, women’s contribution to unpaid work to men was in the ratio of 3:1.  Goes without saying that women devote more time than men to household chores including childcare. This act of shouldering the double shift goes unnoticed in a majority of the cases. 

WFH culture led to women working overtime not just for work but even for their homes. Close to 90 per cent of schools faced shut down, globally, during the peak of the pandemic. This led to children being at home – i.e. in 24 hours supervision of their parents. 

A mother was seen performing the role of a cook, cleaner, teacher, playing friend, etc. among other things. So much that the spillover of the household responsibilities negatively impacted the work performance of women.

Single mothers saw rock bottom struggling to adapt to this situation. 

4. Long term career loss

WFH has been more of a curse than a blessing in many cases. The flexible working hours stretched into overtime. Sadly, most corporate workplaces in India do not pay extra for the reported overtime. 

This situation has pushed women either to take sabbaticals or quit their job altogether creating a dent in their careers. In a study conducted by Deloitte, about 26 per cent of women are willing to quit their jobs. Although this is very unsettling, many women are relying on the assumption that quitting a job will bring some sort of balance to their lives. 

The situation is grimmer for women who want to return to work after sabbaticals. 

How can organisations enable working mothers?

We need to go beyond the law. Organisational policies surely need an intersectional revamp to provide differently for working mothers. 

Here is a quick to-do list for organisations in taking a step towards supporting and encouraging working mothers:

i. Work From Home Policies for working women

Carve out a separate section in your WFH policy for working mothers.

The initial months of motherhood are highly sensitive, especially for single and trans mothers.

Organisations must take cognizant of this fact and provide for a WFH option with flexible hours for working mothers. This will also aid the organisations in alluring top talent and creating a trustworthy relationship with their employees.  

“9 months of parental leave and work from home have been very helpful for working parents. Many parents have struggled to balance their work and parenthood by stretching long hours at work due to a lack of work discipline at home. I believe bringing a hybrid model alone will not help parents. Organisations must provide financial provisions to set up a physical workspace at home. They must also endeavor to provide enough space and time to balance work while not compromising much with their personal lives” – Pruthvi R

ii. Childcare allowances

Unlike many foreign countries, parents in India do not get childcare allowances from the government. 

The employee benefit component must certainly include a special provision for childcare allowances.  With the hybrid model of working many companies did revise their allowances. They were offering childcare allowances in the form of virtual care, childminders and nanny expenses.  

These initiatives were highly appreciated. 

However, the percentage of corporate workplaces that took these steps is in single digit. Organisations need to come forward and address this point. 

“Organizations before the pandemic were not so diligent on the creche facilities even if that is a legal mandate. What needs to be done now and for the future of work to remain inclusive of working mothers, is to be creative and identify ways more than creche facilities that can aid a mother to continue or to become “working, growing, and successful” in their career of choice.” – Pallavi Pareek

iii. Special Policies

One size fits all is a vague concept while crafting organisational policies. Every organisation’s structure is different and so are the needs of its employees.

Women working in factories would have different demands as compared to those in white-collar jobs. 

Know your workforce. Conduct surveys, appoint experts and then draft your policies. Contended employees with higher efficiency will boost your turnover in unfathomable ways.  

Motherhood is a conscious choice and a very special time in the life of all women. By all, we mean heterosexual women, homosexual women, differently-abled women and transgender women. While a mother is held responsible for nurturing her child even she needs to be nurtured and taken care of. One must do everything to empower a mother in living happily through her motherhood.

A woman’s contribution to the growth of any organisation is indispensable. We need to be more vigilant and compassionate in providing for working mothers in the time of their need.

Ungender Insights is the product of our learning from advisory work at Ungender. In our initiative to build inclusive workplaces for all individuals, we continue to educate and advise leaders on the same. Write to us at contact@ungender.in to know more about our advisory services.