Pregnancy heralds joy, excitement and a hefty pay cut

Becoming a mother could have a devastating impact on your earnings, according to a report released today by the Fawcett Society.

The report, entitled ‘Not having it all: How motherhood reduces women’s pay and employment prospects’ draws together the most recent academic research from several sources to highlight the discrimination faced by mothers.

The pay gap between men and women is well known, but the report shows that it is becoming a mother that fuels this divide. According to the report, partnered women without dependent children earn 9% less on average than men but for full time working mothers with two children the pay gap is 21.6%.

Women are also much more likely than men to be left jobless by parenthood. Before becoming parents, men and women are equally likely to be employed but as soon as a child is born the divide widens and remains that way even when the children have left home. In fact, 57% of mothers with children under 5 are in paid work, compared with 90% of fathers.

But loss of earnings is not the only penalty women suffer as a result of becoming parents. The report shows that pregnancy can make women particularly vulnerable to discrimination, with the recent downturn causing a marked increase in the numbers of women reportedly suffering pregnancy related discrimination.

Dr Katherine Rake, Director of the Fawcett Society commented:

“The choice of whether and when to return to employment is of course a very personal one. However, it is critical that those mothers who choose or need to be in paid work should be able to do so without suffering a pay penalty. “

“These findings will have particular pertinence in the run up to the school holidays when mothers are often facing the biggest challenge in trying to combine employment and child care. The report shows that women are nine times as likely as fathers to arrange not to work during school holidays.”

“All the evidence gathered for this report shows that mothers are faced with impossible choices. To find jobs that are compatible with childcare, they have to make major compromises, trading down their careers so that they can meet their children’s needs. The challenge now for government is to support mothers to maintain their position in the workforce and achieve the family life that they want.”

Alison Weekes, a former-audit manager for Lloyds TSB is one example of a woman who was allegedly discriminated against for being a mother. She is now seeking £70,000 in compensation, claiming that
her boss said, “the audit would be easier for [a male colleague] because he was a single man whereas I am a single mother.”

In the legal papers associated with her claim, Ms. Weekes continues:

“She commented further that because of my childcare responsibilities, I was unable to “put the hours in” as he did.”

“I was distressed by this as I considered it amounted to sex discrimination.”

“She said that I was not truly committed to the role. She also stated that if I did not have a child I would be able to work longer hours and attend meetings after 5pm.”

“I was naturally very concerned about these comments as they display pejorative views on the capabilities of single mothers.”

Last year, Gill Switalski, former head of the legal team at F&C Asset Management, won £19 million in compensation last year after she successfully claimed that was forced out of her £140,000 a year job by bullying and sex discrimination in relation to her status as the mother of two disabled children.

Do you think that mothers are treated unfairly at work? Have your say.