More
than half of parents polled in a survey believe that having children has had a
negative impact on their career, according to a CIPD survey.
Nearly
half of the 503 people surveyed have changed their jobs since becoming a
parent.Â
More
than 70 per cent of women said they were affected, with nearly a third of women
admitting actively downgrading their career after childbirth.
Only
19 per cent of men said their career was no longer on track after becoming a
father, and only 8 per cent had actively downgraded their career.
Three-quarters
of working parents feel that their employers do not offer enough financial
support, but almost half said some form of flexible working is open to them.
When
flexible working was available, take-up was high – 81 per cent on average.
Mike
Emmott, CIPD employee relations adviser, said: "As a society we seem
unable to come up with positive solutions to these issues.
"Energy,
talent and creativity is being lost from the UK workforce because nowhere near
enough employers are offering staff the chance to work flexibility, or giving
out the message that combining motherhood and a fulfilling working life is a
realistic expectation.
"The
more we load on to working parents and particularly working mothers, the more
society as a whole suffers.
"Meanwhile,
employers are missing out on the contribution a diverse workforce can make.
"We
also know that British parents face the highest childcare bills in Europe –
more and more parents cannot afford to pay and that is why women are dropping
out of the labour market.
"Childcare
provision must be given even greater government priority for the good of the
economy and the wider community."
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