Momternships and How to Fight the “Motherhood Penalty”

This past Mother's Day one recurring story was about the impact that motherhood has on the careers of women. One survey found that two-thirds of new mothers have considered leaving the workforce due to the cost and stress of childcare. Many others leave the workforce by choice to be at home for their kid(s).
Regardless of their reasons, when moms do come back, they face a motherhood penalty that makes it harder to get hired, lower wages, and more bias in the workplace. This is a problem we can solve.

Two years ago marketing agency Mullen Lowe launched a popular "momternship" program to help professional moms reenter the workforce. This year, in an effort to expand their program across the industry, they came up with the clever idea of sending flowers to high ranking moms working at other agencies wrapped in the resumes of moms looking to break back into the industry.
We need more programs like this not only for moms but for others who have taken time away from work, such as stay-at-home dads, those dealing with a long illness, full-time caregivers or people who choose to go back to school. Long gaps in a resume are not always a red flag or a negative. Sometimes what a person learned during their time "not working" can make them an even better employee and resource if and when they do decide to come back.