Mothers forced into low paid jobs – research
MOTHERS returning to work part-time after having children are being forced to take lower skilled jobs, new research suggests.
A study found that 44pc of British mothers who go back to work part-time feel as though they were forced to take lower skilled jobs than they would have if they worked full-time.
A survey of 1,600 part-time working mothers found that 48pc of those on low to middle incomes felt they would have had a higher skilled job if they had gone to work full-time.
More than a third of women on higher incomes felt the same, according to the research conducted by Netmums and the Resolution Foundation think tank.
Netmums criticised employers for "wasting an incredible talent pool".
Mothers on low to middle incomes also identified the main barriers stopping them from returning to work full-time including a lack of affordable and quality childcare and working longer hours not being financially worthwhile.
Nearly half of all mothers surveyed said they were unable to find a job with hours which fitted their caring responsibilities, according to the figures.
Sally Russell, co-founder of Netmums, said: "Employers are wasting an incredible pool of talent by forcing mums into lower paid, part-time work.
"It's unbelievable that women are encouraged to climb the career ladder only to be forced back to the lowest rung when they have children."
Resolution Foundation director of research Vidhya Alakeson added: "Childcare costs are a big issue in the UK and are eating up a large chunk of household incomes, stopping many women from working longer hours if they want to ease the squeeze on their household finances.
"Such barriers to work are bad news for the economy, but also bad news for the living standards of households, already struggling in the current climate."
- Ella Pickover
