What this blog aims to bring you

Flexible working report

The report ‘Tasks not Time’ written by the Research Base gives an excellent overview of the barriers for employers and returning mothers in the work place. It highlights the concern that society is suffering as a result of 29% of professional working women down grading their job when returning to the workplace because of the lack of senior part time positions. 86% of women feel that the availability of jobs prevents them from returning to the work place.

Managers also have an important role to play to support returners. 77% of women feel that greater understanding from their manager would help their return.

Stay at Home Dads on the increase

Stay at Home Dads have now reached the 6% level according to this new survey by Aviva. It also confirms that fact that many women find the transition back to work tough with 39% saying they found it difficult.
With more Mothers now earning as much as Father (17%) parents are now able to decide who should care for the family equally. Who wants to stay at home and who wants to work? This will work well for Paternity leave too. Who wants to spend time at home without the fear of a significant loss of income. A more healthy decision then one partner ‘having’ to stay at home even though they might not be the parent who most wants to. “>http://www.PersonnelToday.com/articles/2010/04/07/55127/stay-at-home+fathers+increase+10-fold+in+a+decade.html?alertid=47000138&emailsource=weeklyspecialism

Women in the workplace Review

This article published by the Economist offer a great insight into how other countries tackle the work/life balance so many women are faced with. It has some more stratling statistics but offers a fair relfection of how far we have come and how far we may go in our life time.

http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=15174418

Parliament Gets Maternity Mentoring Accreditation

The Scottish Parliament Maternity Network which I do training for, has just received accreditation. its the first of its kind in Scotland http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/scotland/Mentors-show–parents-back.5952655.jp but not for long as other organisations see the benefits.

If you would like to find out me then please contact me.

Back to work survey results

Liz Morris has published the results of her survey supported by the NCT & Working Families charities. the results provide strong evidence for what many mothers feel. It has also been backed up by interviews with managers from a large variety of organisations about thier experience of managing women during this period.

The good news is nither party feel that they are doing a great job and things can only get better thanks to these resources.

we’ll be getting Liz up to Scoland in the New year to talk about her findings. So let me know if you would like to be kept informed.

http://www.nctpregnancyandbabycare.com/press-office/press-releases/view/184

We can no longer afford to gloss over these issues which are costing our society both in terms of emotional turmoil that so many families go through during this period and the loss of producivity for organisations.

There are so many simple things which both inividuals and employers can do to prevent these issues from arising. With support online and in person which we provide through our Back to Work without a Bump programme the future can only look happier for all working families.

FSTE 100 Women on the decline

lots more potential but not a lot of progress where it matters….. http://www.som.cranfield.ac.uk/som/dinamic-content/research/documents/ft2009.pdf

Fathers Want More Time ……

At last it looks like the tide is turning and the Dads are wanting in on the action. Though we have a long way to go until we have equal rights to time with dependents, its encouraging to hear Dads do want this. Will culture allow them to take it? At present they arent even taking 2 weeks leave let alone 3 months!

http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/business_money/half%20not%20taking%20paternity%20leave/3393102

http://www.equalityhumanrights.com/media-centre/fathers-struggling-to-balance-work-and-family/

I’ll need to change my returners programme name from ‘Back to work without a Bump’ to?????

What Women Want Report

This aptly named report from the Tavistock Centre reveals what women will say in a survey but not to thier friends about work and family. 1/3 of women do not want at all and its not because they dont like work. And only 1% of women think Mothers of children under 5, should work full time.

So this means there are millions of women unhappy, dissatistified female employees. 35% of men and women think that women with children at primary school should not work at all. Yet the Government spends £21 billion on supporting women to return to work. In a Cambridge University a study it found that 46% of women said thier family have suffered as a result of returning to work.  This report also reviews research on the sensitive topic of childcare & the effect of childcare on exam results and behaviour.

Oh it s juicy stuff for coffee shop gossip!

http://www.cps.org.uk/cps_catalog/what%20women%20want.pdf

Sexism In our City

For those of you working in the Finance Sector you may not be suprised to read such headlines but I have been shocked to what exptent the EHRC findings affect our city of Edinburgh. As one of the largest finance cities relying so heavily on Banking we have got a long way to go.

One of the recommendations of the EHRC was:

• Ensuring maternity, paternity and parental support schemes are in place and effective

Only one company was sited as having a good practice of maternity coaching. Quite incredible considering nearly 30% of the the finance sector was surveyed.

I look forward to working with some of them over the coming years!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2009/sep/07/sexism-city-womens-pay

Working Mother: A talk by Fiona Miller

Many people wont know who the journalist Fiona Miller is but they will be familiar with her husband, Alistair Cambell. As with the other ex inhabitants of Nos 10 there is an even more powerful woman behind a each powerful man! Fiona showed she was one not to pussy foot around and said it how she felt it was whether or not it was a ‘labour’ view point.

Having done some extended research on todays working mother her concerns centred around childcare. The fact that we dont really know its affects on children particularly when most of research comes from the states where many children are in nursery from 6 weeks. She feels that it should be subsidised in the UK and the party who introduces this to thier manifesto will win the next election. Unfortunaley no one party has made this a focus.

She talked of how mothers find the retrun to work difficult with many decisions conflicting. she herslef returned after 12 weeks with her first and feel now a years leave is far more appropriate. She has worked different types of flexible arrangements as obviously her husband wasnt going to change his working hours ‘his job was too big’!

Having not read her book (I’ll have to wait until my 8month old has finished teething and is sleeping at night….could be some time!) I am looking forward to her other findings and hope because of her profile this subject will have its profile raised particularly with the politians.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Secret-World-Working-Mother/dp/0091924235