Making it Work

Going Back After Baby

Deciding whether or not to go back to work full-time or part-time, contemplating setting up your own business, choosing childcare and working out when on earth the washing will get done are just some of the stresses and strains mothers face. And that’s before tackling your boss about your rights.
More than 70 per cent of mothers now work, but that doesn’t mean it’s plain sailing. Just as mums have got routines and feeding down to a fine art, and have a social calendar that needs a PA to run it, all this then has to be combined with a career.
A recent survey revealed that 80 per cent of mothers do not want to leave their babies and go back to work, but that 50 per cent went back into full-time employment.
The majority of women state financial reasons for going back to work which suggests that, given a perfect world, many women would spend more time at home with their children, especially until they are
three-years-old.
Indeed 40 per cent of women answering a recent Netmums survey said their main source of stress was the dilemma faced about going back to work. Taking this stressful situation into account, things can become twice as hard for a working mum if she is then not treated as she should be by her employers.
According to the Equal Opportunities Commission in Scotland maternity rights have improved significantly, but that there are still many employers out there who are not only unaware of what their female employee’s rights are, but are not willing to implement them.
As Muriel Robison from the Commission points out this is a very vulnerable time for women, a situation which can be exacerbated by confusion or arguments about rights. She says: “At a vulnerable time in their lives, it is very important that pregnant women and women on maternity leave are fully aware of their rights during pregnancy, maternity leave and return to work.
“Many employers are unaware of the rights of pregnant workers, and it is important that women have the confidence to ensure that get their full rights to leave and pay and that their requests for flexible working on return are fully considered.”

Nursing Needs 
Going back to work can be a major barrier to breastfeeding and, indeed, is one of the most common reasons why mothers with babies over six-weeks-old stop.
But the health benefits to mother and child can be of benefit to employers to. Healthier mothers with healthier children will mean less sickness and absence from work and better morale.
Alison Baum, chief executive of Best Beginnings, and co-ordinator of the Breastfeeding Manifesto Coalition, says: “Employers have the potential to help support mothers wishing to continue breastfeeding when returning to work. They’ll be helping increase the health of the nation while reducing staff absences due to child illness, increasing staff morale and potentially insuring better staff retention - it is a win, win situation.”
Baum stresses the importance of there being a discussion about breastfeeding between a mum-to-be and
her boss before she goes off on maternity leave. “When you go off on maternity leave you head into a hinterland of unconnectedness with the workplace, so if you leave without information beforehand the assumption will be that there will be no provision.”
As Baum points out there are only a few basic facilities needed by women wanting to express breastmilk, which most employers should be able to provide. She says: “They need a room that can be locked, and ideally in the room there should be a sink so they can wash their hands and be hygienic, and a fridge to store the milk. A sick room often works quite well though they should perhaps be renamed ‘health rooms’.
“I think best practice would be providing a breast pump so the woman doesn’t have to be schlepping a pump back and forth from home every day; I’m not saying every employer should have to do that, but having a room and making women aware that their employer is supportive of breastfeeding before she goes on maternity leave is crucial.”
The Breastfeeding Manifesto, launched in May 2007, is pressing for the Government to legislate for breastfeeding breaks for woman at work, as happens elsewhere in Europe. In Italy breastfeeding mothers can take two one-hour breaks during the day while in France they can take two half hour breaks.  But the CBI here in the UK has resisted change claiming breastfeeding is a minority activity.
But Baume says: “You are talking about hundreds of thousands of women every year, and you are talking about support in a discrete time window that will not only pay dividends for the health of baby and mother, but also the value that the mother attributes to that employer because of the support she got during that critical period.”

Coaching Mums Back toWork 
SAM Pringle, who runs Beeleaf Consulting in the Lothian area, believes coaching can give new mothers faced with the dilemmas of returning to work a real chance to flourish and make changes which will have a positive impact on their lives. Offering emotional and practical advice to women who are either experiencing difficulty finding a new job, or who are negotiating conditions for a return to work after the birth of their child, are areas Sam specialises in.
This might involve helping with legal advice and updating CVs, or advising someone on how to improve their communication skills and build their confidence. Sam says: “These are the types of dilemmas I discuss with mums who come for coaching. When you hear ‘coaching’ people think of sport and many don’t know how it can help or where to go for this type of support.
“But research has shown that people who are provided with the opportunity for personal development through coaching are more likely to flourish in their roles and report great job satisfaction, which leads to
improved performance and productivity.”
Beeleaf Consulting offers one-to-one advice for individuals, or works with organisations to help them prepare the environment for returning employees.
Contact Sam Pringle at samantha.pringle@beeleafconsulting.co.uk and visit the website at www.beeleafconsulting.co.uk. Tel 0795
4433659.

Educating the Bosses 
One organisation seeking to improve the difficult transition from the world of nappies and baby rice to high heels and power lunches is the Baby Gurus.
A Scottish company run by two mums, it has just launched a new service for employers to help them get to grips with what pregnant women as well as new mothers, and fathers, need on their return to work.
Emma Thomson and her colleague Sonya Murray devised the Corporate Antenatal service to give tailor made advice to employers, however large or small, so that they have the tools they need to help their employees and avoid falling foul of the law.
Emma says: “We’ve had a very positive response which shows that this is an area that hasn’t been well covered. When I was in this position at work after having a baby I found myself in a situation where I had a Human Resources manager who had no children and who found it a difficult issue.
“We will provide a service for organisations where they can get advice, receive training and use our online service, all of which should reduce absence and raise morale. There is much more openness now about issues such as breastfeeding and people are looking to their employers to do more for them.”
Emma adds: “All we need to do is get people thinking about what they’re employees need, it’s not rocket science.”

Doing it Herself 

WHEN 39-year-old Tanya Ewing limped up on stage to receive an innovation award for her energy-saving invention just 12 days after giving birth to her first child, noone could doubt her commitment to juggling home and work life.
On morphine and very uncomfortable Tanya was hailed as Scotland’s top female innovator at the Glasgow Science Centre where she won the Biggart Baillie Innovation Award for her revolutionary utility meter Ewgeco, a device designed to measure real-time consumption of
electricity, water and gas.
And 10 months on Tanya has never stopped juggling, with baby Coll a regular feature of her business meetings as she works to get her product to market next year. And although an accident of timing, the Perth mother is an example of the many women who decide running their own business is the best way to dictate their own work-life balance.
Tanya was undergoing IVF treatment when she came up with her business idea. She hadn’t worked for eight years due to suffering from Lyme Disease, a debilitating illness caused by a tick bite. But determined to make it work she went to Business
Gateway for advice.
“It was so nerve-wracking going to business meetings,” she remembers. “I had butterflies because I didn’t know if I could do it. I’m living proof that appearance isn’t everything, I don’t wear heels because of my illness and it hasn’t stopped me.”
Despite losing one of the twins she conceived four months into her pregnancy Tanya decided to press on with her business idea. “It seemed the best thing for me mentally,” she says.
And when Coll was born his arrival coincided with business success for the new mum. She says: “After the award I had no choice but to work because my diary was suddenly filling up, I had been catapulted to the next stage.
“I took Coll to my first business meeting and he snored really loudly the whole way through, it was great. I take him with me quite often, I have never had any trouble apart from about three weeks ago when, strangely, a girl who was standing in for a man who was on paternity leave told me it might give the wrong impression.”
Tanya said she could not have managed without having a nanny who has been able to fit in around her busy schedule. “I definitely couldn’t have done this without her,” she says.
“I would recommend what I have done to other mothers as long as they have a good support network around them. You also need to be really well organised and very adaptable. I have an attitude where I don’t get hung up on things and I know that not every day is going to go as I planned so I don’t let it bother me.”
For more information on Ewgeco contact Tanya Ewing on
01738 447741.