Advice: Maternity leave: Expert tips for retaining your staff Written by Beth Gault Thursday 12 January 2023 Share Share to LinkedIn Share to Facebook Share via email Fewer than one in five new mothers return to full-time work in the first three years after maternity leave, according to a 2019 study*. This CMI member is pioneering ways to make work more welcoming New mothers can leave the workplace for a number of reasons. These include childcare costs, the idea of leaving your child with someone else, the lack of flexibility in a job, or confidence. Mental health can also play a huge factor. Around 25% of mothers and 10% of fathers experience some form of psychological distress, either antenatally, or in the 12 months after they have a baby. Francesca Prior CMgr FCMI is operational manager of the employment support team at Southampton City Council, where she works on a perinatal mental health project called PATH, focusing on the period during pregnancy and up to a year after giving birth. Francesca did some research with colleagues at the Institute of Health Visiting into this topic in order to educate and help employers encourage parents back into work after leave. Her work involved interviewing parents who have experienced perinatal mental health struggles and then making various recommendations on how employers could support them better. “There’s a huge amount of guilt and feeling of failure for a lot of parents coming out of maternity leave, and employers aren’t always very understanding,” says Francesca. So, how can employers and managers encourage people back into work after maternity leave? Get Francesca’s detailed, first-hand insights about return-to-work success Login or register below for Free Instant Access Login If you are already registered as a CMI Friend, Subscriber or Member, just login to view this article. Confirm your registration Login below to confirm your details and access this article. Sign in with email Email remember me remember Forget? Please confirm that you want to switch off the "Sign in with email" remember me feature. Yes No Register for Free Access Not yet a Member, Subscriber or Friend? Register as a CMI Friend for free, and get access to this and many other exclusive resources, as well as weekly updates straight to your inbox. You have successfully registered As a CMI Friend, you now have access to whole range of CMI Friendship benefits. Please login to the left to confirm your registration and access the article. Advice Looking for advice and guidance? Whether you are looking for topical tips or information, you can find the latest advice and guidance from the CMI team here. Members See More CMI Members have access to thousands of online learning and CPD resources. Learn more about our membership benefits Join The Community CMI offers a variety of flexible membership solutions, tailored to your needs. Find out more and get involved in the CMI community today.
