The changes in the dynamics of considering workers as liabilities to term them as assets have increased the growth of human resource management (HRM). HRM departments are focused on ensuring motivation of the workers to enhance their productivity. In recent years the human resource (HR) have used their skills to strengthen diversity and better working conditions for the workers' satisfaction thus increase workers’ retention rates (Mondy, & Martocchio, 2016). The achievement of these objectives reduces costs of recruitment and loss of experienced employees. The HR proposes policies that make working conditions better and ensure that workers are motivated to remain in their company.
According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, employees’ needs from the lowest to the highest change and must be satisfied to improve productivity. At the low levels sense of belonging and payments are the most essential to the workers whereas at the top levels recognition and self-actualization dominate their wants (McGuire, & Maslow, 2011). Mothers returning to the workforce are at different levels in the hierarchy of needs thus the study address the various issues facing them and the role of HRs in ensuring quick and efficient transition back into their positions.
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The first step towards the achievement of this goal is the description of the policies and laws to facilitate women in the workforce. The summary provides a detailed analysis of gender laws that have played a key role in enhancing the rapid entry of women in the task force. The next chapter discusses the issues pertaining mothers in the socio-economic settings. The challenges addressed in this section are solved in the third chapter while providing the benefits of HR and business management changes to ease the integration of mothers returning to the workforce. Finally, the conclusion offers a summary of the ideas raised in the entire paper.
Laws and Policies enhancing Gender Equality
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination of any kind in the labor market. The Act was instrumental in strengthening gender and racial equality in the task force but its failures in putting companies under the obligation to enhance uniformity needed other laws to facilitate faster changes. However, the patriarchal social setting of the country made it challenging for women to be integrated thus leading to the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 (PDA) that prohibited the discrimination of pregnant women from the recruitment, promotion, and other benefits that they are entitled to receive. However, the PDA failed to protect women taking maternity leaves hence the passage of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA).
FMLA guaranteed 12 weeks for all full-time workers without threatening their employment status. Other essential laws that the Federal government has passed to enhance equality are Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and the Affirmative Action (AA) that are focused on ensuring diversity in the workplace presentation. The EEO and AA benefit the protected classes such as women, men of color, disabled and older workers from discrimination (Mondy, & Martocchio, 2016). Companies complying with the expected results in diversity of their taskforce enjoy exemptions and improve their social image. The diversity of employees is also beneficial to the company as it sets better working environment by using the diversified skills and characters towards the achievement of organization’s goals.
Challenges Facing Mothers Returning to the Workforce
Women consist of more than 42% of the total workers, but only 10% of these employees occupy the executive positions. Women also earn relatively less than their male colleagues in similar situations (Paludi, 2014). The patriarchal social norms although diminishing are still spread in the U.S. Although fewer women lose their jobs due to pregnancy, about two-thirds of the women are unable to return to work after the maternity leave due to the unfavorable working conditions that are detrimental to these mothers. The growing segment of the U.S. labor force comprises of mothers with 70% of the employed mothers having children younger than three years (Paludi, 2014).
The three maternity leave is not enough for suckling the newborns with, but the limitations in child care in most businesses, over a third of the mothers return to work after three months reducing the duration of breastfeeding. African American and Hispanic women dominate the one-third of women that return to work within three months since they work in low-income. The low-income jobs are less suitable for the mothers and newborns as it limits the continued breastfeeding time and frequencies. The two-thirds of the women working in high-income employment are mostly the whites who mostly return to work six months after child delivery. This group of mothers face fewer challenges compared to the low-income women.
Women under the low-income status face the dilemma of choosing whether to continue breastfeeding their children or return to work thus opting for the latter (Korabik, Lero, & Whitehead, 2008). The choice influences their children’s health in the long-term which in return affects their productivity and costs of production of the company. Breastmilk improves the immune system of the children, but the short span of breastfeeding reduces the immunity of the children thus increasing ailments of the children. The traditional gender roles are changing, but women are still expected to carry out most of the household tasks, for instance, raising and providing care for their loved ones. Therefore, the low-income workers are more likely than their high-income colleagues to be absent from work while taking care of the sick children. The FMLA guarantees that employees should provide sick leaves either for the worker or a loved one such as a mother taking care of a family member. The absenteeism increase results in low productivity and inability for the worker to be stable or integrate to the demanding responsibility due to stress and disruptions.
Most companies do not pay their employees' maternity leaves. Mothers may choose to return to work to earn money rather than breastfeed their children. The choice as described earlier result in reduced productivity. The changes in the family model since the 1960s have led to increased pressure among working mothers. Before the increase of divorces and gender equality in the labor market, most families comprised of two parents with only working as a full-time employee. Over 60% of women at the time rarely worked, and their roles were raising children. However, the current economic constraints, divorces and increase of single-parent have led to only 20% of families in the U.S. where one parent does not work.
The changes have decreased time spent with family and increased pressure on working mothers as the family is dependent on their earnings. The economic needs outweigh the family responsibilities to the mothers which have reduced the number of childbirths in recent years. According Paludi (2014), women lose most after maternity leaves if they opt to raise their children. The returning mothers returning to the workforce are bound to be overlooked to roles that they previously held in the companies or promotions to higher positions. These issues decrease the morale of mothers returning to the workforce and must be addressed to improve the situation while enhancing the productivity of the employees.
Solutions
HRs roles pertain enhancing workers’ satisfaction and motivation which in return improves productivity. Since the turn of the 21st century, companies have tried to change the issue of reduced breastfeeding that implicates the companies negatively. The child support and breastfeeding programs and policies have been used to ensure that the mothers continue to breastfeed while working (Paludi, 2014). The companies set aside a clean and quality room where working mothers can breastfeed or lactation. The process lactation is undertaken in private and for about 15 minutes after three to five hours. The distress and illness that can be caused by lack of emitting the breastmilk improve the concentration of women and their productivity. These programs are dependent on the flexibility of roles and time in the companies (Paludi, 2014). Successful companies have increased flexibility in the schedules allowing the workers even to skip job at least once per week to help the transition and ensure quality interaction with the newborns. These firms enhance their family-oriented culture that limits stress of the working mothers and probability of absenteeism due to common illnesses of the children. The programs are cost-effective and boost the morale of the mothers for high productivity both in the short-term and long-term basis.
The use of paid maternity leaves is also one of the best ways to integrate returning mothers and show support. As earlier illustrated financial constraints increase the absenteeism of mothers, therefore, paid leaves help depict the sense of belonging and family culture needed for these mothers. Companies that use paid leaves are competitive and understand the costs that losing the mothers can cause to the company due to recruitment costs (Mondy, & Martocchio, 2016). Lastly, equality in promotions enhances the productivity of women at large, and they are motivated to work harder to be promoted and earn more income compared to disproportional or discriminative promotions. The women know that only their work or skills will determine their working status in future rather than suffering due to their gender being considered inferior.
Conclusion
Mothers returning to the workforce are faced with many problems, and the law has not entirely protected them from discrimination. The HRs must understand the counterproductive measures of discriminating women and the negative attitude it brings such as low retention rates and loses in productivity. The HRs must learn from the successful companies to implement breastfeeding and lactation programs to limit absenteeism and paid leaves to motivate the workers.
References
Korabik, K., Lero, D. S., & Whitehead, D. L. (2008). Handbook of work-family integration: Research, theory, and best practices . Amsterdam: Academic.
McGuire, K. J., & Maslow, A. H. (2011). Maslow's hierarchy of needs .
Mondy, R. W., & Martocchio, J. J. (2016). Human resource management .
Paludi, M. A. (2014). Women, work, and family: How companies thrive with a 21st-century multicultural workforce .
