Let’s face it: being a mum is, in itself, enough of a challenge for one person to deal with without throwing in a career. But what if you want — or need — to do both? Working mums are more commonplace than ever before, and while necessity is one reason why, another is that workplaces are steadily getting better at accommodating parental responsibilities.
If you’re a mum currently looking for work, or already in a position but not getting enough support, you have to be proactive and ask for the concessions you deserve. Realistically, the worst that will happen is that your requests will be rejected — but then you’ll know what kind of business you’re dealing with, and you’ll have good reason to look elsewhere.
In this post, we’re going to look at five work perks that every mum should ask for. Here they are:
Lactation support
Breastfeeding is still very tricky for working mums. For just one reason why, they might not have anywhere with enough privacy to do it at work. This is why you should ask for support from your employer. Not only should you be provided with a suitable place to breastfeed in the office should you need to do it, but you should also be helped with any equipment you need (breast pumps, for instance, or milk storage bottles).
Care cover
Looking after a child is expensive. What happens when you need a break, or you have to go somewhere and you can’t realistically take your child with you? That’s particularly common with business trips: you’re asked to attend some conference, but the cost of getting someone to babysit is far more than you’re comfortable paying.
Many companies already cover regular travel costs (paying for flights or train journeys, for instance, or — per iCompario — giving drivers Shell fuel cards), so it’s hardly unreasonable to ask for the funds to pay for childcare while you’re away. Alternatively, you can ask for the money to bring your child with you: more costly, yes, but better for the parent/child bond.
Flexible hours
The daily demands of a mum are predictable in principle, but that’s not how things work in reality. You never know what you’ll need to do at any given time. You might need to make an emergency hospital trip, or deal with a screaming child who just won’t stop making noise, or attempt to remove stubborn vomit stains.
There’s also the sleep issues that inevitably stem from motherhood: you can’t know when you’ll be able to get some rest. For all of these reasons, you should request flexible hours. Provided you get your work done in time, it shouldn’t matter exactly when you do it.
Paid therapy
Being a mum — particularly a new mum — is stressful in some major ways, and regular maternity leave isn’t enough to magically leave you feeling fully in the right mindset to get back to work. That’s where asking for some paid therapy can be extremely useful. Having a non-judgemental professional to talk to about everything you’re feeling will allow you to get things off your chest without worrying about being a burden.
Education tools
Government-funded schooling is often inadequate, even when the schools are actually running, and every mum wants the best for her child. If you’re going to have less time to spend with your child because you’re pursuing your career, you should have as many options as possible for helping them learn and grow.
Companies can provide their employees with everything from educational toys and games to educational apps (or even tablets, since something like an iPad can make a huge difference in a child’s development). Ask for some kind of support with this. Even if you don’t get everything you think would be useful, it will really help.