Returning to work

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• Workplaces are changing to meet the needs of working parents.
• Your employer might have some good suggestions for how you can balance the return to work after a baby.
• Life as a working parent will be easier if you can share your child care workload with other carers, family or a partner.
• Having a plan for unexpected events such as sick children can take some pressure off.

The return to work is usually motivated by needing the money, enjoying the work or the interaction with other adults, or a combination of these factors. Whatever your reasons, you will find that rejoining the workforce now that you're a parent raises practical issues like:

• tackling the expense and availability of child care
• getting used to new family routines
• handling the extra workload of parenting plus a job.

It can also be an up and down time emotionally. You might have new and even conflicting feelings about returning to work and putting your child in care.

The excitement of working and spending time with adults again can get mixed up with nervousness about your child’s care and other feelings like guilt and sadness. Even if the adjustment takes time, things usually settle down. 

When you return to work, there are some effects you might expect.

• It can take a while to adjust. Mothers who return to work sometimes feel they suddenly have two jobs. Research says this is partly because, although more women are entering the workforce, domestic duties are not always well distributed. Men aren't always doing more housework when their partner returns to work.
• Women might feel more stressed as a result of the extra work. Research has shown that more than half of working mothers feel they take out their stress on their families.
• You may have income difficulties when trying to balance the cost of care with money earned.
• There might be difficulties organising care if your child falls ill. Research says that mothers often take on the responsibility of a sick child, whether they are working or not. This might be because the father is earning a higher wage and is seen to have more work responsibilities.
• There’s also the traditional view of the mother as primary carer. Some people think it is more acceptable for the woman to stay at home.

Child care

Child care is probably the biggest concern for working parents today. For some, the cost of child care has increased so much that going to work is just not worthwhile financially.

When your wages are just paying for child care, you might wonder why you work at all. Although enjoying a career is important to parents, the child care issue influences many people’s decision to stay at home.

Separation from your child can also affect your decision on child care. Research says that about one in ten working mothers feel guilty about having their child in care.

Feeling stressed

Getting the work-family balance right can take a little while, and when you return to work you take on extra responsibilities. Naturally, this might cause you some stress.

Stress can be triggered by events or it can slowly build if conditions at work or at home are difficult.

Tips on reducing stress as a working parent:

• Take care of yourself. Eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly.
• If work is making you feel stressed, talk about your concerns with your manager or human resources manager.
• Are there things you could change at work to reduce your stress levels? If so, try to make these changes yourself or with the help of others. Perhaps you need to reduce your workload or hours? 
• Are you getting some regular time to yourself? This is a great way to relax and put things into perspective.
• Try to stay organised at work, listing your tasks and managing your time so things don’t get on top of you.
• Try not to take out stress on your family. If you find you are snapping at your partner or children (or being very quiet) make the effort to talk about work problems.
• If the stress continues to be a problem you may need to consider another job or else a career change. Seek advice from others or talk with a career counsellor.

Having a big break

If you're planning to have a few years off work there are some extra things you might want to consider. The main one is, don't forget about work altogether, as tempting as it might be. Keeping up-to-date will make it much easier to get back into your career when you're ready to work again.

• Keep in touch with old work friends – go out for a coffee and a catch up now and again.
• Try to keep up to date with your industry – read journal articles or items in the paper, browse job ads every few weeks to see what employers are looking for, perhaps take a course to keep your skills fresh.
• Do some short-term, freelance or casual work to keep your hand in.

Once you are ready to go back to work, sit down and have a think about the new skills you've gained raising a child. Some of these will look pretty good on a resume – you've probably learned a lot about negotiation, responsibility and balancing multiple tasks, for starters. When you're writing an application, be sure to emphasise these, as well as anything you've done to keep in touch with your industry.

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