Return to work after maternity leave

[OlenaG]

Hi. My name is Olena and I am mom of 2,5 yo boy. For the last few months I was looking for the job to return to work after maternity leave. I have found out that it isn't that easy after almost 3 years gap in my CV. So now I've decided to do some research on building a career after maternity leave (to see if I am the only one have problam with it). And I would like to ask moms who had (or have them now) difficultiesin with job search after career break and getting back to work. What was the main painpoints and worries? How was your first few months once get back to work? I did find some useful information in the other talks here. But I would really appreciate if you could share your stories as well. Thank you.

Hi I am still a stay at home mum so I don't have an answer, just saying hello and I'm interested to see people's answers as I would really like to get back to work soon x

What did you do before? What qualifications do you have and what do you want to do next? Are you up to date with your training? Is there any volunteering you could do to get a food back in the workplace?

Hiya I've been back to work for a year now after finishing my maternity leave and I honestly love being at work and having a break from our little boy...I think it's really healthy to have u time and time with other people...I couldn't be a stay at home mom as it would drive me crazy...I started a new job straight after maternity so I can't really comment about a maternity and work break xxx

I was working in tech as a product owner, now looking for the same position or product manager (I am really interested in this area). I did a lot of courses and read books, I try to keep my knowledge up to date as much as I can. Unfortunately, I cannot really volunteere, as I am a full-time mom. However, I do run few professional local communities for moms. Of course I do have some gaps, but I am not expect to get senior position.

@jesslambo88 Thank you for sharing. This is my dream now to have my time and time with other people :)

@SuckingDownDarjeeling For how long are you 'stay at home mum'?

@OlenaG since my maternity leave started with my twins I've been home with them, they are nearly 2. I used to work as a graphic designer and I would love to go back to work if I could get childcare x

@SuckingDownDarjeeling I am a bit more that 2 years in meternity leave, I don't really feel like a childcare is a problem fo me, unless I have a job. Could you please share what stops you from the getting back to work? You have mentioned childcare, but what do you mean by 'I could get childcare'?

The childcare costs for two children are very high and because my partner earns over a certain amount I'm not entitled to benefits so I'm not entitled to free childcare when they turn 2. My partner can't afford to pay for childcare and if I worked to pay for it I wouldn't be bringing home any extra money, we'd possibly even be paying out more than I would be earning. It's so frustrating x

@SuckingDownDarjeeling I fully understand what you mean. I am also not eligible for the benefits. My solution in such situation is to find the better paid job, so I can be able to pay for childcare and still have some money to put in family budjet. However, I see now after a couple of unsuccessful tries, that it isn't easy to get well paid job. Did you try to find a job with the enough salary for your family?

@jesslambo88 wasn't it hard to find a job and get back to it straight after maternity? What are your life hacks to prepare for the interview with a child?

@OlenaG yes I tried to find a job that would cover all the expenses and take care of as much as possible financially. I know a lot of the problem is my confidence but also I haven't been able to find the time to work on my skills at home to prepare me for the new challenges that I would face if I went back to work. I need to figure out how much of it is my confidence and how much retraining I would actually need. I hope your thread can give us some answers