Supporting Mothers in a Modern Workplace

“I have a friendly family in my hometown who lives right across the street. They are a loving senior
couple who lived with their son. Last year when the son married to a beautiful young woman, conflicts
started at home, as the lady wanted to continue her job but the seniors were opposed to the idea –
coming from the traditional mindset of middle-class families in India that negates the need of a woman
to work. However, the solace lied in the facts that they relented once the convent-educated, highly
qualified husband convinced them that it is not as much about the need as about her individual identity.
Recently they gave birth to a lovely boy – which again brought to discussion the professional life of the
lady. With the husband mostly out of the town and the parents aged, it was difficult for her to attend to
her professional commitments while providing enough care to the newborn – and trust me she is not
alone going through this. It is no longer a problem of the society but a requirement that needs to be
catered to if we want to truly support half of our population stand on their feet. This is what some of the
organization are trying to mend.”

For a society like ours, we have unique challenges faced by various sections of the population and the
problems of working mothers is one such challenge. There were times when societal pressures and
other concerns would not allow women to work, however, that has changed to some extent in urban
areas. While the inherent denial has withered, there are new issues that have come up. For most of our
families, women are the primary caregivers to their child and hence the requirements of children take
the front seat when they think about their professional life. Managing the responsibilities of a mother
and a professional is something women have to deal with on a daily basis. Succeeding on both the fronts
is what today’s women aspire to and all they need is a helping hand. Off late, many organizations,
especially in the corporate world have realized the important role that women play in their companies
and hence have started extending that helping hand – just to make the life of women professionals a tad
easier. Many organizations have formally made inclusion an important pillar of their work culture. Such
organizations proactively try to provide the right environment to all sections of the work population –
working mothers are an important component of this population.

Here are some of the latest in the series of benefits that the corporates are extending to their women
employees:

Benefit Stage of Motherhood

Flexible Work Options Pre and post delivery
Extended Maternity During delivery
Insurance Benefits During delivery
Day Care Facilities Post-delivery
Counselling Pre, during and post delivery
Travel Support Pre-delivery
Lenient workload Pre and post delivery

Flexible Work Options

One thing that women find challenging is attending office for the entire day while being the primary
caregiver to a newborn. Newborn, even after the initial few months, have specific needs that only a
mother can best understand and staying away for long is not something a mother may be ready to do.
Most offices have had the requirements of clocking specific office-hours to be eligible for regular salary
or satisfactory performance ratings. However, today’s is a very different world where technology offers
a plethora of options to facilitate telecommuting and virtual workplaces. Many organizations offer their
professionals options to work from home or work for limited time-durations from office. This is what
these organizations offer readily to their women professionals. Working from home while still taking
care of their babies is something that makes their life a lot easier. They can provide the required care
and then attend to their work from a free mind – knowing that they are just a cry away in case their little
one needs them.

Extended Maternity

While the government has prescribed a six month (26 weeks) of compulsory maternity leave for women
professionals, at times this is not enough for the mother to be ready to enter the professional life.
Childbirth is a painful journey at times and a mother has to go through innumerable experiences
through the journey. There are instances when she may take longer than the prescribed timelines to get
on her feet and be ready to handle the pressures of office, while still nurturing the newborn. It is to
cater to this need that organizations have come forward with options to extend the maternity leave
using available paid leaves. The messaging is clear to the managers and supervisors – be generous when
dealing with requests to extend the maternity period using available leave balances or advance leaves.

Insurance Benefits

In most of the cosmopolitan cities, medical is one expense that spoils the family budgets to an
unimaginable extent. The medical costs have risen manifolds and lack of a public health care system
forces people to private hospitals, which charge heavy bills for any medical attention. Childbirth, too,
faces the brunt of this spiraling cost. All hospitals today offer package deals for delivery, which often is
six figures in number. It is this challenge, which brings anxious moments for families, and to assuage
this, maternity and delivery are being covered as part of group medical insurance coverage. Many
organizations offer special voluntary cover for women which provides enhanced financial support during
and post pregnancy.

Day Care Facilities

Who takes care of the child when the mother is busy attending the meetings and presenting in front of
clients? Being the primary caregiver, it comes on their shoulders to work out the modalities and when
the organizations offer facilities like day-care, it is no less than a God-gift. Many large organizations have
either developed an in-house facility or engaged a partner near their office to provide daycare facilities.
These facilities are excellent, modern and safe places where the kids can play and learn basic etiquettes
while their mothers handle the meetings free from worries.

Counseling

Pregnancy and post-pregnancy are trying times for couples as the mother sees so many changes in her
life – physically, mentally and socially. With nuclear families and away from guidance, there are so many
unanswered questions that the couples deal with and situations that are difficult to navigate. All they
need is some guidance and support to steer them through this period. Many organizations have started
programs which offer buddies or mentors to prospective parents. These buddies or mentors are mostly
professionals from the organization who have gone through the experience themselves and are in the
best place to provide answers. For more critical needs, professional help is offered too, through third-
party partners or in-house counselors. The aim is to reduce apprehensions, provide guidance and act as
a sounding board.

Other Support

Many organizations have devised specific program and facilities to make the life easier for working
mothers or pregnant professionals. There are benefits like travel facilities, enhanced remuneration or
lenient workloads to make the transition into the new life easier. All these are just a courteous way of
saying that their employer is with them in their journey and values all that they bring to the table.

However, to believe that things are all good and life of a women professional in today’s world is much
easier than what it used to be would be a step away from the reality. While there are multinational
organizations, which offer the above facilities, we also have smaller organizations, which lag behind with
a vast margin. They do not even fulfill basic regulatory requirements, hoping for these extras is simply
beyond expectations for those working there. Then there is the entire unorganized sector, which does
not believe in any courtesies and is solely bound by the work-hour pay schedule. So, while things are
changing, a lot needs to be done to support this important milestone in a woman’s life and both the
employers and we as a society have an important role to play in this.