Lure New Mothers Back to Work essay

Many women expecting a baby choose not to return back to work after their maternity leave. As a result, HR departments have to face the loss of skilled and experienced workers due to “mommy drain”. This phenomenon increases turnover and adds to HR risks. It also increases the load on HR departments, as it is the responsibility of HR planning strategy to hire, train and integrate new skilled employees. The costs of replacing an employee are 1.5 times greater than his or her annual salary (for an employee with annual salary equal to $50,000) (Shellenbarger D1). Therefore, anticipated HR costs are also affected by the “mommy drain”. For some companies, new HR planning initiatives are also created due to the “mommy drain”, such as flexible working time, paid maternity leave, availability of unpaid extended leave, internal rotation of positions and career breaks for working moms. Mentoring, training and telecommuting are also included in HR planning in order to reduce the effect of the “mommy drain”

Most likely, flexible time and/or telecommuting will be the most effective incentive to keep working moms on the job or to recruit them. If these options are available for women, they will be able to choose an optimal balance between family and work. Paid projects available to women during their maternity leave (Shellenbarger D1) can also be considered as a form of telecommuting, and will be useful for keeping working moms on the job. These projects will help women to feel confidence in their professional skills, thus reducing the possibility that they will quit working after the end of their maternity leave or switch to other employer. In addition to this, paid projects and availability to work flexible hours might help moms to overcome postnatal depression and balance the change between their busy working life and daily routine of maternity leave.