I was not able to find a single college-educated stay-at-home mother who couldn’t find fulltime work within twelve months. A survey by the Center for Work Life Policy in New York shows that 74% of stay-at-home moms who want to go back are able to. Most who don’t get jobs are looking for part-time of flexible jobs, which are notoriously difficult to find.
Certainly, obstacles exist. It takes time and determination to craft a marketable resume without glossing over significant gaps, to find the right childcare, to refresh critical skills, and to come to peace with reinventing oneself -- yet again. Some on-rampers face an initial salary penalty. Staying in the same field and geographic area makes returning easier; as does coming back within 10 years. Critically, the majority of success stories involve a return to fulltime work. Although some companies, such as Minneapolis-based Best Buy Corporation, allow employees to work flexible schedules, there are still far more fulltime jobs.
Wharton, Harvard and Dartmouth and other business schools have started programs for high-powered stay-at-home moms. New companies like Moms Corps, Career Partners, Business Talent Group, McKinley Marketing and Flexperience Staffing are springing up to connect professionals with rewarding part-time positions and temporary projects, many of which provide excellent bridges back to fulltime work. Fortune 500 employers such as Lehman Brothers, Citigroup, UBS, Johnson & Johnson and Discovery Communications are targeting talented stay-at-home moms whose skills and educational credentials outweigh any perceived negative of time off. “Well-educated stay-at-home moms have experience, judgment and maturity that our companies need,” explains Anne Erni, managing director and chief diversity officer at 29,000-employee Lehman Brothers.
At-home mothers across the country are proving that choosing stay-at-home motherhood does not spell the end of your career, especially if you got skills, a good education, are determined to return, and are willing to work fulltime. Not a fairytale ending – we won’t have that until there’s a cornucopia of flexible, well-paid, part-time work for men and women in all segments of the labor force – but far better news than moms have gotten in a long time.
*This answer is adapted from a piece I wrote recently for Huffington Post.
Your three thoughts/pieces of advice/observations for professional moms:
- Invest in yourself and your education before you have kids (or before you have your next kid!) to maximize your negotiating leverage in the future.
- Befriend as many other moms as possible, both working and at-home, to build an extensive network of support. Motherhood can unite women, not divide us.
- Stand up for yourself and be good to yourself – this is the best gift you can give yourself and your children over time.
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