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What Working Mothers Really Want — More Flexibility

by Pamela Skillings     Send to a friend Send to a friend


Flowers and jewelry make nice Mother’s Day presents, but a recent survey from CareerBuilder uncovered what working mothers really long for: more quality time with their families. In fact, many would be willing to trade a higher salary for a more flexible schedule.

 

The survey, which  reached out to 880 women who are employed full-time with children under the age of 18 living at home, discovered that:

  • 43% of working moms said they would take a pay cut if it meant they could spend more time with their kids
  • 34% said they would be willing to give up 10% or more of their salaries

 

You know that work/life balance issues have gotten serious when people are willing to give up a good chunk of their paychecks for some relief. According to the survey:

  • 34% of working moms said they spend less than three hours per day with their children
  • 24% said work had negatively impacted the relationships they have with their children
  • 27% had missed two or more significant events in their child’s life in the last year
  • 17% reported they had missed three or more
  • 16% of working moms reported bringing work home at least three days a week

 

For many of these working mothers, a little bit more flexibility would make a whole lot of difference. The good news is that CareerBuilder.com has also found that more and more companies are recognizing the importance of offering options like telecommuting and flexible work schedules. 

 

If you’re struggling to balance the demands of work and parenthood, keep in mind that there may be ways to negotiate a more flexible schedule at the office. Even if your company doesn’t advertise the availability of these work arrangements, you may be able to work something out with your manager. The key is to approach it as a business conversation and look for compromises that will give you more flexibility for family demands without leaving your company in the lurch.

 

And if your current company doesn’t see the value of supporting work/life balance, there are other companies out there that do. To find them, start by checking out the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For (in particular, see the companies ranked highest for work/life balance, telecommuting and other benefits) and the Working Mother Top Companies rankings.

 

 

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May 12, 2008 | Digg | Del.icio.us | Stumble | Reddit | Facebook | Newswine |

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One Response to 'What Working Mothers Really Want — More Flexibility'

  1. Yolanda - May 21st, 2008 at 12:53 pm

    Despite all the research, it looks like most companies are still resistant to working things out in a reasonable way.


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