Working and Mothering

So as it turns out, that photoshoot a few weeks back that caused me a very sleepless night didn’t turn out too badly. If you happened to pick up the Sunday Independent yesterday, you may have spotted me in Life magazine.

Source: Life Magazine, Sunday Independent, September 11, 2011

I don’t think I’ll be getting any phonecalls about potential modelling contracts any time soon, but I’m happy enough with it. Phew.

I guess the bigger question is – why was I being photographed in the first place? Well last month, a journalist called Emily Hourican contacted me and asked if I’d be willing to talk to her about changing attitudes towards pregnant women in the workplace, negative attitudes in particular. I replied and told her I’d be very happy to speak to her about it, but I felt I’d be the balance to her article because my experience as a working parent has been a positive one.

You see I’ve been very lucky in that my company has been nothing but supportive since I announced I was pregnant with Little Man back in 2009. Flexitime, my salary topped up for several months of maternity leave, and then the biggest bonus of all – the ability to take one day a week off through the parental leave programme for twelve months after my return to work. Each of those things made it easier for me to strike a good balance between my work life and my family life, and I am very thankful for that.

I know that not everyone is as lucky with their companies – flexitime may not be an option, smaller companies may not be in a position to afford maternity pay top-ups, and parental leave may only be available in lengthy blocks – and since it’s unpaid leave, taking it in large blocks may not be an affordable option.

I wish more companies offered the same options – and not just to their female employees. Daddies are entitled to parental leave too. And, as Charlie discovered, sometimes it’s just a matter of asking for a shorter week during an interview – although it might not have been mentioned as a possibility, that doesn’t mean it’s not something the company won’t consider.

When discrimination in the worksplace against women of childbearing age is discussed, the solutions that I hear proposed generally revolve around better legislation to protect women. But I really believe that solutions that talk about women only are too narrow in their focus. Where are the initiatives to promote the rights of fathers in the workplace? Legislation in Ireland is completely lacking in this area. Without a doubt, fathers are second-class citizens when it comes to parenting rights here.

Women may find themselves discriminated against in their work lives, but men are being discriminated against in their home lives.

I strongly believe that if this major issue in men’s rights were addressed, we would start to see less discrimination against women. After all, what’s the point in discriminating against a potential female employee because she might take maternity leave, if a potential male employee might just as well take paternity leave?

In an ideal world, I would love to see couples have the right to split maternity leave between them, however it suits them. I would love to see fathers automatically entitled to at least a few weeks parental leave following the birth of their child. Is that really too much to ask?

What do you think?