Deliver due diligence

If a pregnant pause was not enough to derail career prospects for women, some organisations are resorting to diluting their duties to forestall their future, writes Paarth Singh

A newborn brings joy to the family and along with it many responsibilities, most of which is shouldered by the woman right from the time of conception. These can get compounded if she happens to be a working woman as workplaces now seem to be restraining and pausing their career growth prospects by watering down their duties leaving most women with no choice but to either quit or rough it out.

“My performance was graded as ‘outstanding’ for five consecutive years which propelled me to the position of a team leader. As soon as I announced my pregnancy, the attitude of my colleagues changed,” says Savitha, a 28-year-old software engineer with a leading IT firm in Bengaluru. “Despite the fact that I was working until the 32nd week of my pregnancy and having delivered two substantially large projects on time, my efforts seemed to go unnoticed and was graded as ‘average’ after my return from maternity leave,” she laments. A co-worker of hers was shunted to a less interesting project with fewer responsibilities, leading her to eventually quit.

According to the law, a woman is entitled to a minimum of six months of maternity leave. However, this ‘leave’ has left many women in the dilemma of starting a family. “Knowing the fate of my colleague who announced her pregnancy, I decided to abort my 4-week-old foetus as I was scared about my professional growth,” says 26-year-old Parushmita.

“Many recruiters feel that a woman may not be able to give her 100 per cent to the job owing to her attention being diverted to her newborn,” feels Zyna who took a sabbatical owing to her pregnancy, lest she loses her job at an IT firm. “Harassment of any kind does not have a place at work, whether it is based on pregnancy or on any other personal attribute like gender, caste, colour, religion etc. Having said that, there is a chance that harassment could also come in the form of not being allocated work worthy of her role and competence or when work responsibilities are diluted on the assumption that she is now going to be distracted by childcare,” says Nirmala Menon, CEO & founder Interweave Consulting Pvt.

The fact that raising a family is a part of a woman’s life is well known to both employers and employees. So why the scepticism on the new mother’s capability? “It is difficult for mothers as we are in a predicament of wanting to be with the baby and wanting to return to our career. We have to overcome the guilt of choosing the job over the child. A little flexibility at work would give us huge encouragement to pursue both,” says Mamata who even had to take the help of a therapist as she was venting out her stress and frustration on her kids.

“It is best to avoid the situation by having a candid conversation with the manager even before she returns to work. A conversation on what she can and cannot do with regards to the roles available should be her decision and not assumed by the manager. Once on the job, it is fair to hold her to the requirements of the job provided that she is also supported in whatever way the organisation can to help her succeed,” suggests Nirmala.

The notional consequences have forced some women to quit soon after returning to work. “This is sometimes done deliberately to avail the salary and other perks they may have accumulated during their leave. They would have also found a new job with the same benefits which they feel would have reduced in the current organisation owing to their leave,” says Raman, a human resource executive at a leading hospital.

“A new mother should ensure that she is open and candid about her plans. She should inform the organisation as soon as she finds out she is pregnant so there is sufficient time for planning the transition. Similarly, she should keep in touch with her team as and when possible to keep herself updated and also about her plans to return. If she is clear about not returning for any reason whatsoever, it would be expected that she informs the organisation so they can plan their next steps around it,” recommends Nirmala.

However, it is easier said than done. Many women silently endure the hardships and humiliation just to ensure that their career is ‘safe’. “I put in a request to come in half an hour late and leave early by half an hour to be with my newborn daughter. My request was turned down. What is the use of dedicating nine years of my life to this organisation? I do not feel valued yet I do not have any other choice as jobs are hard to come by, especially for mothers,” laments Fouzia, chief architect at a home designing consultancy firm.

Strangely, dads who leave early to pick up their kids or attend their kid’s games are portrayed as ‘ideal dads’ and do not seem to have any problems. But that is a different story!