Two thirds of working mothers feel their promotions at work have been blocked

Aisling Keenan

The aul Motherhood Penalty seems to be at it again…

A recent survey of 2,000 professionals in Ireland has revealed some of the challenges faced by working mothers.

According to the survey by Robert Walters, a specialist recruitment firm, workplaces in Ireland aren’t exactly providing the support packages, pay raises, and promotions that these hardworking mams need.

Coral Bamgboye, Head of Diversity and Inclusion at Robert Walters, said: “The data highlights how working mothers are not only losing out on guidance and support for promotions, but they are also finding it significantly harder to reach the higher echelons of pay, which still seem to be dominated by men.”

A staggering 56% of working mothers haven’t received a promotion from their current employer, despite believing they’ve earned it. This is a 14% difference compared to working fathers in the same boat. Seems like fair promotions are just not happening for them.

When it comes to pay, the disparity continues. Less than a quarter of working mothers in white-collar roles earn €49k or more, while a striking 53% of working fathers achieve this or above. And if we look further up the pay scale, only 6% of working mothers earn €87.5k or above, while 21% of working fathers are taking home that level of pay.

Bamgboye adds: “This is having knock-on effects to how comfortably they can live day-to-day – hitting single mothers especially hard, with almost a quarter having to rely on credit cards and payday loans to get by.”

Only 10% of single mothers stated they are able to ‘live comfortably’ on their salary, while a significant 22% of them depend on additional income streams like credit cards, payday loans, or side hustles to make ends meet.

In contrast, single fathers reported a much lower reliance on such income streams. According to the survey, 36% of working mothers said that balancing work with personal commitments is a major roadblock to their careers.

What’s even more concerning is that 1 in 5 single mothers experienced active discrimination against their personal circumstances in the office, and a significant 27% of working mothers admitted they lack the confidence to highlight their own achievements.

Bamgboye’s call to action seems clear: “Working mothers feel they are stuck when it comes to progression, pay, and support from employers – and more needs to be done to address this, particularly in this cost-of-living crisis.”