It has become alarmingly clear that the Covid-19 pandemic is threatening women’s careers. In September 2020 alone, 865,000 women left the U.S. workforce, compared to 216,000 men. Furthermore, one in four women are considering either leaving the workforce or reducing their work hours. A stream of advice has suggested how working mothers can work from home with kids, manage work/life boundaries (or lack thereof), and handle anxiety over school decisions. Yet when we interviewed working mothers about these challenges this summer, we learned how many have taken it upon themselves to address the challenges they’re facing, rather than their employers and managers stepping up and getting involved.
3 Ways Companies Can Retain Working Moms Right Now
865,000 women left the U.S. workforce in September 2020 alone.
November 12, 2020
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Summary.
As Covid-19 forces women — particularly mothers — out of the workforce, the authors ask what managers can do to help reverse this trend. The authors interviewed employed women with children under the age of 16 at home and who had partners. The conversations revealed how managers were — and weren’t — supporting the women. The authors find three ways that managers can ensure mothers remain on the job — during the pandemic, and beyond: Provide certainty and clarity, wherever possible, rightsize job expectations, and continue to show empathy.