Fighting the working mothers gender pay gap
In an economy rife with redundancies, diminished access to credit and decreasing pay, working mothers may have the most difficult role of all.
A study by the Fawcett Society- a women's rights campaign group - shows that women with children make on average only 73.9 per cent that of their male counterparts.
The group credits the chasm to systematic prejudices, occupational segregation and the time necessary to care for a family which is inevitably time away from work.
Economic and lifestyle reasons often dictate women, single mothers particularly, must maintain the daily life of the working woman whilst still acting as a full-time mum.
Sounds hard? It is. Kelly Gilblom looks at how to maintain your career, your finances and be a mother.
"All the evidence shows that mothers are faced with impossible choices," said Dr Katherine Rake, head of the Fawcett Society.
Not only do mothers require flexibility and convenient access to childcare in terms of job placement but proper part time roles are few and far between.
In addition, employers can be hesitant to hire women they fear may require frequent time off and the state mandated minimum 26 weeks maternity leave with a guaranteed continuation of the original employment contract on return.
"If someone comes into an interview and you think to yourself there is a possibility that this woman might have a child and therefore take time off, it is a bit of a psychological negative thought," said Alan Sugar, now Gordon Brown's business tsar, said last year.
The bottom line?
Though sexism may linger in the office, it's often about the bottom line. According to women's finance expert Anna Sofat employers tend to mould individuals to jobs not jobs to individuals.
"Employers tend to look for specific people to fill specific jobs. They don't say 'Well, here's a good person let's adjust the job to suit her'. It's a more grown-up attitude I suppose."
A boss may think a dedicated mother may prove more resistant to complete career devotion than a man or woman with the exact same skill set but without the same familial obligations.
But are mothers getting a bad rap?
Data from the Office for National Statistics suggest wage differences are largely based on differences in occupation rather than actual job performance.
Ms Sofat believes mothers as a whole tend to be quite conscientious, especially when an accommodating employer allows them to take on the dual roles of employee and mum.
"I certainly think if an employer is flexible you're likely to get a really dedicated employee. The three or four days a week they're there they work really hard - it can pay off in terms of productivity."
How to do well?
So what's the secret? In a time where doing it all seems to be a necessity how does a woman, well, do it all?
Lisanne Mealing, mother and managing director of MDM Associates, says being proactive is the key.
Establishing contacts and credibility in a desired career field before starting a family will pay off when a mum is ready to get back to work.
"Basically, you spend the early years mapping out your career so when you have kids you're so skilled employers are willing to allow flexibility," she said.
"I find personally I tried to think from the employers' point of view."
Ms Mealing utilised advancing technology to maintain the career she wanted while caring for her newborns. She worked from home and kept up her skills and confidence as a career woman while spending the desired and necessary time with her children.
She added: "At the end of the day, it was so effective I almost didn't want to go back."
Providing an employer with an incentive to be accommodating is often the best strategy.
"It's a two-way street, not grab, grab, grab."
Reasonably, not all women can work from home. An appealing resolution tends to be cutting back on hours.
"Part time and flexi-working is the key. If you can have flexi-working hours with your existing employer that's the best position," said Ms Sofat.
It's ideal but not always simple.
From the eyes of an employer, dead desk space during the week and decreased reliability may be associated with part-time workers.
That may partly explain the lack of solid part-time opportunities.
"There aren't enough proper part-time roles and frankly I think that hasn't changed," said Ms Sofat.
"A cause may be outsourcing or filling the positions with temporary jobs. Agencies have a lot of flexi and part-time jobs but they are less secure."
Ultimately, unless there is a major attitude shift as result of legislation or social pressure, the responsibility almost always lies with the mother to prove her value.
"Employers typically aren't the ones to offer up the flexibility."
Women may look into options like job sharing, working outside the office or even revaluating their careers altogether as possible solutions.
"Motherhood can be a time for reassessment and to look to your future. It's a time when you can be more willing to take a risk."
Regardless, planning ahead is crucial.
"You need to look at out goings and comings in."
Amount of savings, reliability of a partner, job security, availability and affordability of childcare and cost of living are just a few factors that need to be carefully scrutinised before making such a life change.
However, the pragmatism of planning years in advance may be a luxury not afforded to all mothers.
Women can find themselves desperately needing an income whilst also needing to dedicate almost all their time to the caring of their children. In addition, they may have no one helping them whether in the form of either a partner or family member.
The Fawcett Society cites the jobs these women take up are typically the lowest paid, with the least benefits and the most prone to redundancies in bad economic times.
"It's a difficult place because it's so easy for them to replace you," said Ms Mealing.
In such an extreme and thorny situation, the answer is just as tricky.
Women may also find themselves landing in the pitfall of trying to take on part-time work whilst being expected to produce results required of full-time employees.
"The employer is effectively exploiting them."
Initiatives like the Flexible Working Directive and maternity laws are designed to combat these problems.
Though they've been under fire by opponents for producing the opposite effect of their goal by essentially giving employers a disincentive to hire women, they may still be successfully implemented.
Mothers in a tough spot benefit from knowing their rights by doing their research before seeking out a new job and considering options like temping.
Though less secure, agencies tend to always have open positions.
Ms Sofat explains motherhood doesn't have to end a career. She took the opportunity to reassess her goals and start her own business. In the end, it comes down to a combination of planning and adapting.
"It doesn't matter what you though you'd feel. When you go through it it's life-changing."
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