Career Development of Working Mothers: Helping and Hindering Factors in Doing Well in light of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Women’s career development amid the COVID-19 pandemic suggests that we may be facing a ‘female recession’, where women are at significantly increased risk for dropping out of the workforce with the gender gap in the workplace likely to grow. However, the pandemic may have presented opportunities for working mothers to engage creatively in personal career decisions due to increased opportunities to work flexibly and pivot in a very quickly changing labour market. This qualitative study used the enhanced critical incident technique to explore the intersection of working mothers and career development considering the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants for this study were a sample of 18 working mothers in North America and Australia. Key factors that were identified as helping women do well in their career development during COVID-19 included: Supportive workplaces, social support, personal protective factors, job market factors, and resources (predominantly financial). Hindering factors to working mothers’ career development included: workplace challenges, family challenges, personal stressors, job market factors, COVID-19 mandates and restrictions, and childcare. The findings from this study help elucidate factors that contribute to a meaningful and productive career so that clinicians and other professionals can support, advocate, and encourage women who remain working during motherhood.