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It’s no secret that working mothers still face discrimination in the workplace. With few legal protections in place, many mothers are forced out of the workplace (fired or laid off) and exposed to stereotypes about their abilities. I have faced discrimination several times as a working mother since her 1997. The discrimination they faced led to their promotions being revoked and their leadership roles removed.
From the moment I saw that little blue plus sign, I’ve been fighting for equality at work and at home. Lack of paid leave, exorbitant child care costs, and discrimination made my early career difficult at best, and for the majority of Americans, starting a family is nearly impossible.
I was only 24 years old when I became a mother for the first time. At the time, I was new to many things: becoming an adult, getting married, and owning a home. I never knew the statistics would be against me so much. I had never thought about the disparity between men and women. That was the reality. Little did I know that I would be stepping into a whole new world, one that constantly belittled me.
After all, new mothers Paid maternity period less than 8 weeks Taking time off increases your risk of depression and worsens your overall health. My husband and I were a young couple just starting out, and we desperately wanted to spend more time with our newborn, but in our minds we thought the six weeks of paid maternity leave her employer offered would be enough. I couldn’t afford to get it. Increased time off from work without pay. we weren’t alone. two thirds of workers I don’t take the vacation I need because I can’t afford it. They can’t afford to go to daycare. For infants, Average cost of center-based childcare It exceeds tuition at in-state public universities in 34 states.
On my first day back from maternity leave, I learned that a young man I had hired a few months earlier had been promoted over me. When I asked her boss why I was not considered for a promotion, she said that she disagreed with it, but that it was out of her control.according to Pew Research Center analysis16% of working parents have had a promotion revoked because they have children, and mothers are more likely than fathers to report this experience.
My company’s business hours were from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. I had to be out the door at exactly 5:30pm every day to pick up my son by 6pm, and I had to pay $1 for every minute I was late. Still, I was pulled aside and talked about leaving on time whenever other employees stayed late. It was as if it spoke to my lack of work ethic and drive to succeed. I wasn’t alone.mothers 40% more likely more than fathers who report that childcare issues have had a negative impact on their careers.
There are many lessons I learned early on. Looking back, it’s easy to see where the bias was and what changes needed to be made to create equality. My only recourse was to take matters into my own hands. Here are six tips for recognizing and overcoming adversity to build a prosperous career.
Related: Why is there a boom in female entrepreneurship now?
Tip 1: Change starts at home
If you carry your baby for 9 months and give birth, you’ve completed 100% of your parenting journey thus far. Don’t let your partner think you’ll continue to do this.
Like most toddlers, our toddler didn’t sleep through the night for months. So I went to work exhausted every day. One day, a few weeks after returning from maternity leave, I fell asleep at my desk. The owner of the company passed by, saw me and gave me a ride home. When she told her husband about it and asked him to help her, he said, “I can’t do that. I have a job.” Not only was I devalued at work, but I was also devalued by the people I cared about most at home.
When a couple decides who will spend more time with each other after the birth of a baby, it makes financial sense for the person with the lower income to spend more time with them. This means that because women earn less than men, maternity leave is usually given to mothers. If companies paid men and women equally, these conversations would be eliminated as part of decision-making and it would make more economic sense for each partner to take equal time off from work. This will change the perception within the family.
Tip 2: Take matters into your own hands
When my son was about 8 months old, my husband and I decided to move closer to family. When we found our new home, I started looking for a daycare center. The cost of daycare was prohibitive, so I interviewed several mothers who were providing daycare in their homes. I walked away from every meeting depressed.
Unable to find reliable care for her son, she continued to be ignored and undervalued at work. At that time, I decided to participate. 43% of women People who quit their jobs after giving birth. I quit my job and started my own daycare at home. I used my marketing background to spread the word, and within two weeks I was working full-time with a pregnant couple on the waiting list to care for her three infants and her one toddler. I did. I spent the next six years caring for young children and raising my own children.
Tip 3: Think long-term, act short-term
By 2005, I had earned a degree in writing and freelanced as a copywriter. Two years later, during the recession, her husband and I separated. I had two elementary school boys and a 2-year-old daughter at home, so I had no choice but to go back to work full time.
Finding a job in a recession is hard enough, but having a nine-year gap on my resume didn’t help. It was virtually impossible to pass an interview, let alone be offered a job that paid enough to support childcare. Naturally, a woman who took just one year off from work; 39% less income than women who don’t. I desperately wanted a full-time job with health benefits, so I took the account manager position. My salary wasn’t enough to cover daycare costs, so I held on to freelance clients. I worked all day, dropped off the kids at night, and then threw myself into a freelance writing project. It wasn’t something I wanted to do forever, but it paid for itself in the short term and set me up to start my own business in the long term.
Tip 4: Look for opportunities
In 2011, the recession hit the marketing industry and companies decided to ditch advertising agencies and work with freelancers to lighten their budgets. The number of my freelance clients has more than doubled, but at the same time our agency’s client roster has been cut in half. This allowed me to negotiate to work on freelance projects during business hours in exchange for a portion of the freelance earnings. I was able to take on more clients without having to miss all of my nights so I could still be a parent to my kids and get enough sleep at night to be ready for the next day. I did.
By 2013, my freelance business was thriving and on August 1, 2013, I quit my job and went full time. That decision changed my life and my home.not surprising 75% of self-employed women We love what we do. Working for myself has allowed me to organize my priorities and plan my working hours to suit my family. It wasn’t the other way around. I worked late into the night, but took hours off after school to go to the park, have family dinner, and do homework.
Tip 5: Be open.
In 2015, I was offered the role of Content Marketing Director by a freelance client. I loved the flexibility of working for myself, but it was also a great opportunity to build and manage a content writing department from the ground up. I accepted the role and learned everything I could. After a year, I started traveling more, staying late at night, and needed more time with my kids. I gave notice and in exchange for hiring a replacement, he negotiated a 12-month freelance writing contract. Within a few months, I started a marketing agency.
Related: What would you tell a young woman thinking of starting a business?Here are her six important messages to share
Tip 6: Remember that actions speak louder than words
In 2021, I received another job offer from my previous employer. This time it was an executive position and a stake in the business to bring my agency into his company as the social media arm of the business. I said yes, thinking that at least I would learn something and, at best, I would be able to grow my agency much faster than I could on my own. While they enjoyed a steady income and benefits, they were drowning in work and no matter how hard they tried, they were unable to change the culture.I started looking for support through networking groups and was invited to join chief, a powerful network of female executives. This was a great opportunity to learn from other female executives, network with colleagues, and get in front of potential clients. It had everything my male colleague had. I explained the benefits and asked the company to sponsor a membership. they refused.
I decided it was worth the investment and paid the fee myself. When I published his LinkedIn post announcing the membership, the CEO expressed disappointment that I didn’t mention his company in the post. That’s when I decided I could no longer work with a company that refused to invest equally in its male and female leadership teams. In June 2022, I served notice and withdrew the agency from the merger.
On Mother’s Day, we celebrate mothers, and so do businesses. It’s no secret that brands are increasingly jumping on the social cause bandwagon, but consumers can’t be fooled by the fact that many brands are putting their money where their mouth is. They want real change.
Want to celebrate your mom? We offer paid maternity, parental and family leave so working parents have the time they need to give their children and families a healthy start. Normalize paternity leave so fathers can take equal responsibility for and bond with their children.
According to one report, more than 120 countries, including most developed countries, provide paid maternity leave and health benefits by law. International Labor Office (ILO) report. If the US fails to do so, 80% of employees There is no paid leave after giving birth. almost half They are not even guaranteed unpaid, job-protected leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act.
The answer is not to leave the workforce. The answer is for the government to provide paid family leave like almost every other country does. Until then, the only answer is to take matters into our own hands.
Maya Angelou said, “When someone shows you who they are, believe it.” The same goes for companies.Work-life balance issues cause surprising conflicts 72% of women. Don’t share your time or talent with companies that don’t support you.