Dive Brief:
- In a survey of nearly 1,000 working moms, 87% said they’ve missed promotions or other opportunities due to becoming a parent, Zety’s Motherhood & Work Impact Report revealed. Likewise, 90% said they adjusted their career trajectory due to parenthood.
- Working moms also face bias in the hiring process and stigma about motherhood, the report found; of those surveyed, 89% said they were asked about their parental status during either an interview or a review. A majority also said they thought their pregnancy was considered an inconvenience at work and that they needed to work harder than those without children to prove themselves.
- The survey results indicate that the adage “you can’t have it all” remains a reality for many working moms, who say they have had to “mak[e] major career sacrifices just to stay afloat in a system that still penalizes parenting,” according to the report.
Dive Insight:
“Before motherhood even begins, women are bombarded with unsolicited advice and career warnings when it comes to starting families, signaling that parenthood and professional success are still seen as incompatible,” the report said.
More than 3 in 4 working moms said they were explicitly told to put off having kids until they were more established in their career, and 82% said they were told that becoming a parent would hurt their career, the survey found.
To that end, 77% of those surveyed said they were afraid to share news of their pregnancy with their boss or co-workers over fears about job security and negative reactions; only 58% said they felt supported by their employer after sharing their pregnancy news.
The survey also revealed the stress on working mothers to be seen as available. Eighty-one percent of respondents said they were asked to cut their maternity leave short — or otherwise alter it — to benefit their employer, and 91% said they think women without children are seen as more committed and thus have an advantage at work.
Beyond career setbacks, discrimination complaints are filed regularly by working mothers who are allegedly denied time or space to pump breastmilk at work, in violation of the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mothers Act.
In one case, a former Chipotle employee was allegedly told by a manager that the company’s refusal to schedule her was partially tied to the better availability of employees who didn’t need accommodations to pump or to store milk. “It limits you even more,” the manager allegedly told the plaintiff.
The majority of women said they feel like mothers are “forgotten once the baby arrives,” according to a 2024 report by The Harris Poll on U.S. maternal health. Many reported barriers to accessing needed healthcare during pregnancy and childbirth, with the top barrier being inability to take time off work or find childcare to be able to attend appointments.
At the same time, when women are able to access and use health benefits, their attendance, retention and productivity at work can be positively affected, according to a November Integrated Benefit Institute report.
