Negotiating return to work after Maternity Leave

[Bermuda]

Hello,

I will be returning to work soon after Maternity Leave.

I have a full time permanent job, which I am able to return to part time as per the company policy. The policy also states that the return to work is what the business can accomodate.

I have told work I would like to return to work part time, 3 days a week, but I have only been offered 2 days a week.

Does anyone have any tips for me throughout the negotiation process?

[AngelaGirl]

Hi Bermuda

I don't have any specific tips, but from my experience the negotiation process has been influenced by many different factors such as:

1. How long did you work for the organisation before going on maternity leave ie. have you done your time and proved yourself to be hardworking etc?
2. Are you negotiating with your former manager or a new one?
3. What's the organisation's philosophy on staff retention? Do they invest a lot in developing individuals' skills?
4. Is it a specialised or general role and how easy is it to replace you?
5. Is there a perception that you'll be back to work for 12 months and then going on maternity leave again.
6. What's the organisational culture surrounding part-time working mums? Are there many of them? Are they viewed positively or negatively?

My return to work (part-time) after my first daughter was pretty ordinary. New boss full of pre-conceived ideas, no other working mums, poor staff retention in general and a general attitude that you're not entitled to a promotion if you're part-time. Needless to say, I left the organisation a couple of months later. My new place of employment is extremely accommodating of working mums, with heaps of flexibility, as long as goals and deadlines are met.

Not sure if that's any help at all though!

[Bermuda]

Thank you for your reply AngelaGirl

I have been with the company for 5 years, but the role I am in now was newly created when I was appointed. I have had the same female boss since I began in this role, and she does not have a family.
They do have a policy on part time and family friendly workplaces, but I dont think my boss will be implementing this policy.
My job requires a degree, so not too easily replaced. I also have alot of knowledge about other areas of the business since I have been with the company for 5 years.
Great point about there possibly being a perception that I will only be staying for a short time and then going on maternity leave again. I will address this.
There are no mums in my division at all, I am the first one, and no one is working part time. A few of the men have children, but they work full time and are not the primary caregiver.

I do feel like I am still entitled to a promotion or an opportunity to develop my skills even though I am intending to go back part time. Meeting with my boss soon, so I hope the negotiations go OK!

[AngelaGirl]

Good luck with it! Sounds like there's a lot going in your favour and given your experience they should be bending over backwards to keep you. On the flip side, this can be meaningless if your boss is not supportive of part-time workers. It's interesting that you say the organisation has a policy on family friendly workplaces but you don't think your manager will abide by it.. sorry to be pessimistic, but that's not a good sign!!

Oh and another thing to keep in mind when negotiating is to be wary of them trying to give you all the crappy jobs that no one else wants to do because you're the 'part-timer'. Just because you're part-time I don't think your level of responsibility should change - only the volume of work should change.

Anyway, if you don't get good vibes from your manager during your meeting, there's nothing to stop you going back to your job but start looking elsewhere for another job in the meantime. There are many organisations that embrace working mums due to their time management skills!! And the companies I've dealt with always want 3 days or more.

All the best and let us know how it goes.