There’s a point in every job interview, after you’ve finished putting your best foot forward, when the interviewer will put down their papers, smile at you and ask: ‘Any questions for me?’
While some applicants will ask about the working day and most will inquire as to how many people are in the running for the role, or when they expect it will be filled, there is one more burning question that, in the long run, is much more important… except four out of five women are too afraid to ask it.
According to new research from the UK, more than half of women believe that asking about a company’s maternity leave policy is likely to make potential employers jump to the conclusion that they’re already pregnant.
A whopping 78 per cent of women surveyed said they would not mention maternity leave at interview stage, while 41 per cent said they would feel uncomfortable asking for this information at all – regardless of the circumstance.
Research by recruitment company Glassdoor reveals that less than a third of the women surveyed were supplied with information on maternity leave in their induction pack when they began working with organisation. 39 per cent felt this information was difficult to find and 13 per cent reported that employees have to make the move to ask for it as it’s not published anywhere it can be accessed.
Here are some more horrible highlights from the survey of 1,000 women:
- 42 per cent of women would only ask their employer for information on maternity leave if they were announcing a pregnancy.
- More than one in five women fear that by asking for this information, they would be putting themselves at risk of redundancy.
- Most female employees admit they find it difficult to find a ‘best time to ask’ for this information. 22 per cent would wait until they had passed their probation period.
- Almost a quarter would bypass authority and ask a colleague after they had been in the job a while.
Have you ever thought twice about mentioning maternity leave to your employer? Join the conversation on Twitter @HerFamilydotie.
