Returning to work can be a daunting prospect, especially when you’re a different person to who you were when you left. Your priorities may have completely changed and you now want less hours and less stress or you may be feeling refreshed and ready to get back to the grind! Whatever your motivation, we’ve put together our top tips within our easy to remember P A R E N T acronym to negotiate your return to work:
1. PREPARE
Prepare your proposal
Firstly, cast your mind back to the days before Maternity leave and write a list of your responsibilities and professional achievements. If the pre-baby days are a blur in your mind, they could also be a little foggy to your employer – remind them how great you are! Next, create a proposal for what you would like when you return to work, whether that be new responsibilities, reduced hours, flexible working etc – have a Plan A, Plan B and Plan C, putting forward your ‘Plan A’ first. Remember to highlight how it could work for your employer, you could be the best employee in the world but they have a business to run and they need to make sure its viable for them too.
2. ASSESS
Assess what they have to say
It’s always best, where possible, to submit your proposal prior to meeting with your boss. This gives them a chance to understand what your expectations are and review your request in line with the company’s interests. This may mean that you won’t see eye to eye on a few things and that’s okay, you be may be able to think of alternative options, just not on the spot in the your meeting. So, when the day of your ‘back to work’ meeting arrives, listen to them and assess what they have to say. Write notes throughout the meeting, absorb all of their suggestions and listen to their reasonings – then go away and have a think.
3. REMEMBER
Remember your rights and resources
This one’s for you. The majority of companies are completely au fait with the rules and regulations of returning to work after maternity but there are a few that aren’t and can get it wrong. That’s not to say that these companies are malicious when presenting their terms, it could just be that it’s their first time experiencing this and they have a lack of knowledge on the subject, which is why you should brush up on your entitlements and ensure that they comply. Here are some links that you may find useful:
– Citizens Advice
– Gov UK
4. EVALUATE
Evaluate the terms
Take a look at everything you discussed with your manager and think about what terms are acceptable to you. If you’re unsure then discuss with your partner, family and friends, it can be really useful to get other opinions and have somebody play devil’s advocate. There is a lot to think about when it comes to your return to work, but we would say the key things to consider are; cost of childcare, logistics of commuting, the volume of work on reduced hours, their ‘parent’ policies if your child needed emergency childcare and are there any other family work perks available.
5. NEGOTIATE
Negotiate the contract
So you’ve put forward your proposal, you’ve listened to their views and you’ve had a good think about their offer… but you’re not 100% happy and don’t feel ready to sign on the dotted line just yet. The next step is to negotiate with your employer. The best way to do this is to look at the bigger picture, are there any aspects you think you/they could compromise on? Could you reduce your lunch break or start a little earlier? Could they outsource a few of your responsibilities to lessen your workload? When negotiating, it can be really useful to include why you are asking for a change in your contract, the more they understand, the more likely they are to seriously consider your requests. Collate your changes and whilst remaining calm and concise, bring them up at your next review meeting. Good luck!
6. TAKE
Take the offer
Once you’re satisfied with all the changes and you’re feeling confident and happy with your new contract, go ahead and take it! Sign the contract and proceed with the offer.
Please remember, that sometimes what looks great on paper doesn’t work out in real life and that’s okay, hours and job responsibilities can be easily changed. Give it a try, if you don’t like it, look for the alternatives. Returning to work can be a massive source of anxiety with the pressure to get the ‘perfect balance.’ For some that may be working full time, for others that may be working 8 hours a week – both of these scenarios are complete personal choice. Do not compare your working patterns to others, focus on your own family and what works for you as both mother and employee. You’ve got this!
The Working Mum Project 