The Motherhood Penalty: We’re Losing Talent to Caregiving母职惩罚：育儿埋没英才

谢利·扎利斯 袁峰

When women in the workplace talk about their children， theyre often seen as distracted. When men talk about their children， theyre viewed as caring dads. New research supports that the “motherhood penalty1” is real： The latest Bright Horizons2 annual Modern Family Index found that：

· 69% of working Americans say working moms are more likely to be passed up for a new job than other employees

· 60% say career opportunities are given to less qualified employees instead of working moms who may be more skilled

· 72% of both working moms and dads agree that women are penalized in their careers for starting families， while men are not

Is this fair？ The motherhood penalty may play a big part in holding women back from leadership positions and contribute to the wage gap. In fact， women get a 4% pay cut for each child they have， compared to men who get a 6% pay increase on average， according to The New York Times. With roughly 40% of women now the breadwinners， this penalty impacts the financial well-being not only of women， but of men and families as well. Moreover， this bias also affects women who do not currently—and may never have—children.

We may even be moving backwards when it comes to supporting mothers in the workplace： Nearly twice as many U.S. women are nervous to tell their boss they are pregnant as compared to five years ago， and 65% of women without children have reservations about having a child， including 42% who fear it would hurt their career trajectory3， according to the Modern Family Index.

So how can we overcome the motherhood penalty and help companies， leaders and employees think and behave differently？ Here are some action steps to change the equation， from workplace practices that employees can take to policies companies can adopt.

Both men and women should be transparent about your personal responsibilities. We all have a life outside of work： Being open about your own can help encourage others to do the same. What if both men and women brought their family pictures to work， and—rather than making excuses—let everyone know they were leaving early to go to their childs game？ The more we talk about parenting in the workplace， the more it becomes the new norm.

“Ive been in companies where we didnt talk about our families or put up personal pictures because we didnt want others to think we couldnt handle work with our children，” says Bearfield Maribeth， Chief Human Resources Officer of Bright Horizons. “There are moments where you have to step out4 to respond to family needs， and if we see leaders doing that， it makes it easier for everyone to do that. If employees dont feel comfortable， say， taking a call from their child during a meeting， will they really be present？”

Give parents professional support and pathways to leadership. Promote moms into leadership positions so they are role models in the workplace， and give them the support they need. Hila Roberts， an Atlanta-based merchant at Home Depot5 and mother to a 6-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son， says there are a lot of things companies can do to support parents. “Home Depot offers onsite daycare through Bright Horizons， plus 10 days of subsidized backup care6. I have lunch with my son once a week. It gives us one-on-one time—which doesnt take away from work because you have to eat—and personalizes family in the workplace.”

Remember that it takes a village7. When I was working in market research with three young kids， my girlfriends were indispensable. We coordinated with one another and helped each other raise our kids， such as by enrolling them in the same after-school activities so we could take turns carpooling8. I believe having a circle of women to rely on is a secret to success for both work and home life.

“Similar to building a successful startup， it also takes a village to succeed at work and at home，” says Amanda Cashin， Vice President of Illumina Accelerator， which helps entrepreneurs create genomics startups， and mother of a 1-year-old son. “I have a very supportive husband， family and friends， and I have had the privilege of having mentors who have believed in me throughout the years. Im also part of a biotech womens group who support each other as we advance. Our pledge this year is to help one female advance to the C-suite9 or to a board.”

Offer inclusive paid leave. If we want to attract and retain best talent and not just the available talent， then we need to create parental policies that matter， that work and that adjust for employees life stages.

Having inclusive leave policies in place will help normalize caregiving in the workplace. Some legislation to watch is the Family and Medical Insurance Leave （FAMILY） Act that was introduced in 2019， which would allow both men and women up to 12 weeks of paid leave for personal responsibilities， such as the birth or adoption of a child， or caregiving for a parent or spouse.

The Modern Family Index also finds that 89% of American workers think that working moms bring out the best in employees， and rate working moms as more diplomatic， better listeners， better team players and calmer in a crisis as compared to working dads and employees without children.

The workplace today needs leaders with traits traditionally associated with femininity—such as empathy10， nurturing and collaboration—now more than ever. When we support mothers in the workplace and normalize caregiving for fathers， we all win. The time for equality is now.

职场女性谈论孩子，往往被视为开小差。职场男性闲聊子女，却被誉为慈爱老爸。最新研究表明，“母职惩罚”确实存在——光明地平线公司的最新年度“现代家庭指数”调查发现：

· 69%的美国职场人士表示，在竞争新职位时，职场妈妈比其他员工更有可能被筛掉。

· 60%的职场人士表示，得到职业发展机会的往往是能力相对较弱的员工，而不是技能可能更熟练的职场妈妈。

· 72%的职场妈妈和爸爸一致认为，女性在职业生涯中因为生儿育女而遭受惩罚，男性却不受影响。

这公平吗？母职惩罚恐怕在阻碍女性担任领导职位方面起了不小作用，也是导致薪资差异的部分原因。据《纽约时报》报道，事实上，每生一个孩子会使女性的收入减少4%，而让男性的收入平均增长6%。因为现在约有40%的女性要挣钱养家，这一惩罚影响的不只是女性的经济福祉，还有男性和全家的经济福祉。此外，这种歧视还影响到目前未育的女性——她们或许永远都不会要孩子。

在为职场妈妈提供支持方面，我们甚至可能正在倒退。“现代家庭指数”调查发现，对于将自己怀孕的消息告诉老板感到忐忑不安的美国女性几乎是五年前的两倍，65%的未育女性对生孩子持保留态度，其中42%的人担心这会损害她们的职业前程。

那么，我们如何才能消除母职惩罚，促使企业、企业领导和员工改变思维、调整行为呢？以下是一些改变现状的行动措施，包括员工可践行的职场行为和企业可采取的政策。

职场男性和女性都应该大方坦陈自己的个人责任。我们都有业余生活：敞开心扉谈论自己的个人生活会带动别人效仿。如果职场男女把家人的照片带到职场，让大家知道自己提早下班是为了去观看孩子比赛，而不是编造借口，会怎么样呢？我们在职场越多谈论育儿，育儿就越会成为新常态。

光明地平线首席人力资源官贝尔菲尔德·玛里贝斯表示：“在我曾供职过的几家企业，我们不谈家庭，也不展示私人照片，因为不想让别人认为我们有了孩子就无法应付工作。有些时候你必须抽身应对家庭需求，而看到领导如此行事，会更容易让众人效仿。比如说吧，员工开会时对接听孩子打来的电话感觉为难，他们就会真正把心思放在会上吗？”

为职场父母提供职业支持和晋升至领导层的途径。将职场妈妈提升至领导职位，让她们成为职场榜样，并给予她们所需的支持。希拉·罗伯茨是亚特兰大的一名家得宝商户，也是一位妈妈，有一个6岁的女儿和一个3岁的儿子。她说，企业在支持职场父母方面大有可为。“家得宝提供由光明地平线承办的职场日托服务，外加10天后备看护补贴。我每周一次与儿子共进午餐。这让我们有时间单独相处，在职场享受人性化家庭生活，但又没占用工作时间，因为你总得吃饭啊。”

记住，这需要“举全村之力”。我在市场研究行业工作时有三个年幼子女，闺蜜们对我来说不可或缺。我们互相协调，互相帮忙照看孩子，比如让他们报名参加相同的课外活动，这样我们就可以拼车，轮流接送。我认为，拥有一个可以依靠的女友圈子是职业生涯和家庭生活的成功秘诀。

Illumina Accelerator公司专门协助创业者创建基因组领域的初创企业，该公司副总裁阿曼达·卡欣是个有一岁儿子的妈妈，她表示：“与打造成功的初创企业相似，要想事业成功、家庭美满，也得‘举全村之力。我有非常支持我的丈夫和亲朋好友，有幸拥有多年来一直信任我的良师益友。我还是生物技术领域一个职场女性团体的成员，在这个团体中，大家相互支持、共同进步。我们今年的誓约是帮助一名女性晋升为首席高管或进入董事会。”

提供包容性带薪休假。如果我们希望吸纳和留住最优秀的人才，而不只是可供雇用的人才，那我们就要为职场父母制定至关重要、行之有效、适应员工不同人生阶段的政策。

实施包容性休假政策将有助于实现职场育儿常态化。值得关注的法律有2019年出台的美国《家庭与医疗保险休假法》，该法律允许男性和女性因尽个人责任（如生育或领养子女、照料父母或配偶）而享受最多12周的带薪休假。

现代家庭指数调查还发现，89%的美国员工认为职场妈妈能充分发挥员工的长处，与职场爸爸和没有孩子的员工相比，职场妈妈更会待人接物，更善于倾听，更有团队精神，在危机中更加沉着冷静。

今天的职场比以往更需要具有诸如通情达理、悉心关照、乐于协作等传统女性特质的领导人。只要我们支持职场妈妈，使爸爸参与育儿成为常态，大家都会是赢家。现在该是平起平坐的时候了。

（译者为“《英语世界》杯”翻译大赛获奖者）

1 motherhood penalty母职惩罚，女性由于生育而在就业、晋升、绩效评估、薪资收入等方面遭受的负面影响。  2经营托育中心的美国公司，依托雇主企业向其员工提供托儿和幼教服务。

3 trajectory轨迹，轨道。

4 step out出去，暂时离开。  5美国家居建材用品零售商，经营家居建材连锁超市。

6 backup care后备看护，因原定看护安排有变而临时安排的应急看护。  7 it takes a village出自非洲谚语“It takes a village to raise a child.”，本義为“养育一个孩子需举全村之力”，喻义为“养育孩子需要集社区、社会之力”。  8 carpooling拼车。

9 C-suite 指组织机构中最高层的管理人员，即职位名称以C（chief，首席）开头的高管们。  10 empathy同感，共鸣。