Women in the workplace continue to face a persistent earnings gap driven largely by the “motherhood penalty”, a documented drop in income after childbirth as mothers reduce hours, shift to part-time work, or leave employment altogether. Managers and organizations now recognize this challenge as solvable through deliberate policy and coaching support, though progress remains uneven across industries.
According to the Child Penalty Atlas, a 2024 study analyzing data from 134 countries, fathers’ employment remains largely unchanged after their first child arrives, while mothers’ employment drops significantly. This disparity reflects what Susan Harkness, a professor of public policy at the University of Bristol, calls “a motherhood gap because our care system is so gendered.”
The shift to hybrid and remote work since the Covid-19 pandemic has helped retain women in the workforce. Heejung Chung, director of the King’s Global Institute for Women’s Leadership, notes that “mothers being able to work from home has really shifted the dial in terms of women having access to work but also maintaining that work.” However, flexible working alone does not solve the underlying structural problem. Back-to-office mandates now threaten to reverse this progress.
Coaching and Policy as Tools for Retention
Luke Stevenson, head of HR at insurance firm Liberty Specialty Markets, began addressing gender equity after discovering that only 39 percent of leadership positions were held by women. Rather than assume what female employees needed, he engaged leaders to ask directly.
Training and executive coaching proved particularly effective. Liberty implemented a leadership development program for women and brought in executive coaches for women returning from maternity leave. Crucially, Stevenson extended coaching to the managers of those returning employees as well. “We learnt from the past that it’s great for returning mums to get that support and coaching,” he explains. “But with the manager getting that same one-to-one support, they’re also getting an opportunity to reflect on some of the things they can do better as managers to support their [employees’] reintegration.”
Liberty also launched an emergency childcare app, co-created with UK childcare platform Bubble, which reimburses employees who need last-minute babysitters due to work obligations. The company maintains a Care Concierge advisory service for those caring for aging parents. Stevenson believes such initiatives demonstrate management’s understanding of female talent’s real challenges.
Building Policy Through Open Feedback
At Cook, a Kent-based ready meals company and one of the UK’s first B Corporations, gender equity policies emerged from structured employee feedback. The company runs “pig week,” where employees can share ideas openly or anonymously. Alison Payne, the people director, explains the name draws from a Winston Churchill quote: “A dog looks up at you, a cat looks down, but a pig will look you in your eyes. It’s all about treating each other as equals, and feeding back with respect.”
This forum prompted Cook to raise its maternity pay and create other parenthood-focused policies. An employee suggestion led to an IVF policy offering an extra week’s holiday during fertility treatment. Affinity groups, including one for women experiencing menopause, have identified overlooked needs. One group’s input resulted in designated time and space for breastfeeding.
Payne is exploring shared parental leave, where mothers and fathers split time off and pay after a child’s birth. “Where from day one, both parents have equal care responsibilities, it’s more likely that is going to continue going forward,” she says. The approach can make “a huge difference” to female career progression, though logistical challenges persist when employees work for different companies.
The Limits of Flexibility Alone
Clare McNeil, chief executive of Timewise, a non-profit focused on rethinking flexible working, argues that flexible work policies can perpetuate gender inequality if they are not paired with structural change. Because corporate structures assume women will handle childcare, remote work simply facilitates this assumption rather than challenging it.
For mothers, “flexible working does not lead to bonuses. It is seen as a sort of facilitative policy rather than career or productivity enhancing,” Chung notes. She also flags an overlooked gap: menopause. Surveys show menopause symptoms prompt some women to reduce hours, take extended leave, or quit entirely, yet corporate policies rarely address this life stage.
Meaningful progress requires what McNeil calls “courage, will to shift dynamics in the workplace and think differently about how we design jobs.” Without structural rethinking, even well-intentioned flexibility policies risk reinforcing the inequalities they aim to solve.
Frequently asked questions
What is the motherhood penalty and how widespread is it?
The motherhood penalty is a documented drop in earnings after childbirth. According to a 2024 study of 134 countries, fathers’ employment remains largely unchanged while mothers reduce hours, shift to part-time work, or leave employment entirely.
Has remote work solved the motherhood penalty problem?
Remote work has helped keep women in the workforce by enabling mothers to balance childcare and employment. However, experts warn that flexible work alone can perpetuate inequality if it simply enables women to shoulder childcare rather than challenging that assumption.
What coaching approach helped women return from maternity leave?
One insurance company provided executive coaches to women returning from maternity leave and also coached their managers. This dual approach helped managers reflect on how to better support employees’ reintegration and set them up for success.
What unexpected workplace issue affects women's career continuity?
Menopause is often overlooked in corporate policies, yet surveys indicate symptoms can prompt women to reduce hours, take extended leave, or quit their jobs entirely.
How can shared parental leave affect female career progression?
When both parents have equal care responsibilities from day one, it is more likely that equal responsibility will continue going forward, which can significantly improve female career progression.
